TARDIS rewrite
by Madd Madds
Summary: The story of Tory Williams, daughter of a TARDIS, human and Time Lord. Her adventures across time and space. "You what?" "I'm an alien." Jordan stared at her friend for a moment before falling to the floor in a dead faint. "She took that better then i expected." Tory sighed before moving to help her friend. A rewrite of the original story TARDIS.
1. Chapter 1

**How it all began**

)0(

Me: hello and welcome all my brilliant readers to the re-write of TARDIS!

Tory: we decided to post this chapter a month before we origionally sated because it was drawn to our attention that after making you wait months for an update we simply told you that the story would be changed.

Me: so I decided to post this as an apology.

Timmy: I was thinking about making you all wait an extra month but Madds stopped me. Meanie.

Me: they have a point though. But anyway, my exams are over until March so I think I can get some updates out to you, I'm aiming for at least four hopefully long chapters. 

Timmy: I doubt you'll be able to do it.

Tory: Shut it dino and let the woman work.

Me: thank you Tory. 

Tory: Welcome. 

)0(

The planet was barren and dead, the home to an entity named House and the prison of a single Time Lord and his TARDIS. The Time Lord, Righello, had managed to prevent the death of his TARDIS after it was trapped in the body of a human woman though quick thinking but had no way to return it to the actual ship as House had eaten it. Righello had assumed that none of the other Time Lords had noticed his vanishing act due to the war, probably assuming that he was dead, killed in action.

Righello was pulled out of his thoughts by a soft feminine hand landing on his shoulder; he turned to face the human body his TARDIS inhabited, placing his hands on the huge bulge on her stomach; a mark of the new life they had created. Righello looked up into the face of him mate and saw the pain there, the baby was coming.

Only minutes after discovering the pregnancy Righello had stared trying to build a TARDIS from the numerous remains littering the barren planet's surface, he had succeeded but at a cost; he had to charge it and to do that he had to give his remaining regenerations and life-force to the machine.

Righello shared one last embrace with his love before powering the machine, he fell to the ground as his mate and child vanished, a happy smile under his vacant eyes.

)0(

Victoria Savannah Williams was born at four pm exactly on October 2nd 1985; the mother lived long enough to name the child before passing on. Victoria was adopted on Christmas day 1986.

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Me: Righello means ruler in Italian according to Goggle translate.

Tory: For those of you that want to know the main concept of the story is going to remain the same but some events and characters have been altered so that the story makes sense.

Timmy: the pairings are as follows, 9/Tory(friendship) 10/Tory(Romance) 11/Tory(Romance).


	2. Best Friends Forever

**Best Friends Forever**

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Me: Sorry about how short the first chapter was but it was only meant to set up how Tory came to be, this chapter is a bit more important to the story line.

Tory:*yells over shoulder* Heard that!

Me: *exasperated* what now?

Tory: that dino of yours is planning something!

Me: now that I don't doubt *turns back to laptop and continues typing* 

Timmy: *walks into room smirking at Tory* this update is early because Madd Madds started writing the last chapter, got excited and started this one. We all hope you enjoy it.

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_Age 8_

A young black haired girl was cowering in the corner of the school yard as a large group of boys stood around her pointing and laughing at the shorter girl. Another girl charged up pushing the lead boy over as she moved to stand in front of the frightened girl.

"This is none of your business Williams." The boy spat as he got back to his feet. 'Williams' just glared at him. The boy snorted before leading his gang away.

"Thank you." The black haired girl stood, "I'm Jordan."

"Victoria," the taller girl smiled, "would you like to play with me?"

"Yes please!" Jordan nodded. Victoria grinned.

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_Age 15_

"No!" a black haired girl, tall for her age, gasped as she spoke to her friend on the other side of the kitchen table. Jordan, once the shortest girl in the class, towered over her average height best friend Victoria; who now went by Tory.

"I know right!" Tory answered, blowing a strand of brown hair out of her eyes before she continued, "They lied to me!"

Jordan stood and pulled her friend into her embrace.

"I don't care if you were adopted as far as I'm concerned you're the same person you were this morning."

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

)0(

_Age 18_

"You're going to military school?" Tory stared, open mouthed at her best friend.

"I want to make a difference!" Jordan insisted as Tory lowered the envelope she had been about to gift her friend.

"But I thought…." Tory trailed off, "I guess I was wrong." She put the envelope in the back pocket of her jeans.

"I'll still be able to visit!" Jordan insisted.

"No you won't." Tory sighed sitting down on her friend bed.

"Corse I will!" Jordan tried to argue but was cut off by her friends glare.

"I'm going to Egypt." Now it was Jordan's turn to stare opened mouthed at her friend.

"Egypt?" she repeated.

"Yes, what did you think I was taking the language course for?" Tory tried to joke but it fell flat.

Jordan's knees gave out and she sat suddenly on the bed beside her tearful best friend; this would be the first time they were separated since they had met ten years ago!

"I'm gonna miss you." Jordan managed to say.

"I'll miss you more." Tory answered.

The next day Tory got on a plane. Jordan went home tears still in her eyes from the goodbye and saw the white envelope that Tory had tried to give her yesterday. She opened it slowly and burst into fresh tears when she saw a ticket for the same flight that Tory had just left on.

)0(

_Age 20_

Lt. Jordan Mason stared hard at the passengers flooding out of the baggage claim trying to recognise her friend. She felt someone tap her on the shoulder and turned to come face to face with,

"Tory!" she yelled happily before pulling her friend into a hug. When they separated Jordan looked her friend up and down; Tory's skin was a healthy tan colour and her brown hair had lightened a few shades due to the sun, she was wearing light blue jeans and a purple turtle neck jumper. "Welcome home!"

"Good to be back!" Tory grinned.

Three months later the two were sharing a flat in London.

Three months after that Tory was recruited to join U.N.I.T. by recommendation of one of the officers. The next day Lt. Mason and technician Williams were out in the field side-by-side.

)0(

Tory: the next chapter is where the fun begins! *manic grin*

Me: Oh stuff it! *throws a pillow at her that hits her in the face*

Timmy: *sniggers*

Tory: *throws pillow at him*

Me: Stop it you two! *mutters* honestly it's like working with two year olds!

Tory & Timmy: *share an evil smile* Dog pile! *Jump on Madd Madds

Me: why do I even bother?


	3. Aliens of London

**Aliens of London**

A spaceship had crashed into Big Ben and landed in the Thames.

"Not your average day then?" Tory asked senior scientist Cole as she followed him through the base and towards the exit. This was the first Tory had heard of the whole thing as she had locked herself in a sound proof room to experiment with a piece of another alien craft that U.N.I.T had managed to get to before Torchwood.

"No." Cole agreed, completely missing her sarcasm. Tory rolled her eyes.

"Where are we going?" she asked as they flashed their ID's at the door guards to the garage.

"Downing Street." Cole answered.

)0(

Tory had sat in silent shock for the drive, staring out the window. Cole had ignored her and started looking over files labelled Code 9.

"What's a Code 9?" Tory managed to ask, shaking off some of her shock.

"Not a what, a who." Cole corrected distractedly. He handed her the file rather than talk further, knowing that she could reading faster than him either way and then give him the highlights. Tory opened the file and read at a speed that no human would ever be able to manage. Cole ignored this recognising the girl for the asset she was and not wanting her transferred to another department.

"The Doctor." Tory breathed as she set down the file. Cole nodded.

"A Time Lord."

"Wow." Tory muttered, "That's just….wow."

They got out of the car to the flashing of the press cameras; Cole ignored then and headed straight for the door Tory rushing after him, her arms full of files on the Doctor and whatever else Cole had brought.

They were lead into reception were a crowd of other alien experts were standing around, all of them waiting for the meeting to begin. Tory followed Cole and collected her new ID which Cole had to put over her head because of the files he refused to take from her.

An older brown haired woman slipped into the crowd from one of the corridors.

Tory watched as another couple entered the room, an older slightly balding man probably in his forties and a blonde woman just out of her teens, early twenties max. Another man entered the room and started to speak, loud enough to be heard over all the other voices.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, could we convene? Quick as we can, please. It's this way on the right and can I remind you, ID cards are to be worn at all times." He moved towards the older man and the blonde, "Here's your ID card. I'm sorry, your companion doesn't have clearance." I nudged Cole to get his attention.

"Who is that?" I hissed. He turned to look frowning.

"I don't go anywhere without her." The older man answered as he put on his ID card.

"You're the code nine, not her." Both Cole and Tory took in a sudden breath as they worked out who the man was; The Doctor! "I'm sorry, Doctor... it is the Doctor, isn't it? She'll have to stay outside."

"She's staying with me." The Doctor insisted.

"Look, even Idon't have clearance to go in there. I can't let her in and that's a fact." The man tried.

"It's alright, you go." The blonde said to the Doctor.

"She must be his companion." Cole hissed at Tory. The older brown haired woman from earlier joined the group.

"Excuse me? Are you the Doctor?"

"How did she know who he was?" Tory asked Cole who shrugged frowning.

"Not now, we're busy. Can't you go home?"

"Are you sure?" The Doctor asked the blonde.

"Yeah, they're the experts, you should hear what they've got to say." She answered.

"I s'pose so." He gave the blonde a hard look, "Don't get into any trouble." He turned and stared walking towards Tory and Cole before walking passed them and into the conference room. Cole followed hurriedly and Tory followed him.

The Doctor sat himself at the back of the room and picked up the booklet on the chair and started to flip through it. Cole sat one row ahead while Tory was forced into the back row on the other side of the room to the Doctor so she could put her files down. Tory picked up a booklet after sitting down with her files on her left she read through it just as quickly as she had read the files in the car and frowned. Two more men entered the room, both Tory knew because of her reading on the way there; General Asquith and Joseph….something all she could remember on him was that he was now the prime minister.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," the General began, "I'd like to have your attention please. As you can see from the summaries in front of you, the ship had one porcine occupant..." he was interrupted by the Doctor as he leapt up from his chair and started speaking.

"Now, the reallyinteresting bit happened three days ago, see, filed away under every other business. The North Sea, the satellite detected a signal, a little blip of radiation at one hundred fathoms like there was something down there... you were just about to investigate and the next thing you know, this happens, spaceships, pigs, massive diversion, from what?" no one answered, probably trying to work out who he was. The Doctor rolled his eyes, "If aliens fake an alien crash and an alien pilot, what do they get?" he paused, the answer to his own question dawning, "Us." Tory connected the dots the same time as he said it, "They get us. It's not a diversion, it's a trap. This is all about us." Everyone in the room was leaning forward on their chairs waiting for more, "Alien experts, the only people with knowledge how to fight them gathered together in one room." Suddenly the prime minister farted. The Doctor, who had being faceing the room, turned to the top table where the General and PM were sitting. "Excuse me, do you mind not farting while I'm saving the world?"

"Would you rather silent but deadly?" the PM asked before he and the General sniggered. The whole room stared at them. The General took of his hat and placed it on the table before reaching up to his hair line and pulling at the zipper that was hidden there. A flickering blue light filled the room as the General unzipped his own head revealing a green baby like head underneath. The rest of the generals' skin fell of as a huge green alien at least twice the size of the man it had once been stood proudly at the front of the room.

The PM started to laugh manically.

"We are the Slitheen." The General announced.

"Thank you all for wearing your ID cards." The PM said as he pulled some sort of switch out of his pocket, "They'll help to identify the bodies." He pressed the button before the room could fully process what he'd said.

Pain.

It was like nothing Tory had ever experienced before. She screamed as she fell to the floor tears building in her eyes. She managed to make out the Doctor struggling to his feet and pulling the tag off of his body. Somehow Tory found the strength to do the same, she flung it away from her at the same time as the Doctor spoke.

"Deadly to humans, maybe." He rushed forward and slammed the ID into the centre on the collar like thing the creature was wearing. Both the creature and the PM howled with pain.

Tory pushed herself up to her knees and the Doctor turned, he stared at her in shock for a moment before helping her up, grabbing her head and running out of the room with her.

They made it back to the reception area were the security team was waiting. Tory was only upright from sheer force of will once the Doctor let go of her hand.

"Oi!" the Doctor yelled, grabbing their attention, "You want aliens, you've got them. They're inside Downing Street." He clapped his hands,_ "_Come on!" he turned, grabbed her hand again and led the armed men back to the conference room.

When they entered the General was once more human. The PM turned to the door as the group entered.

"Where've you been ?" he demanded as the security team started checking the bodies, Tory noticed Cole's form spread eagled on the floor and buried her head into the Doctors arm, not realising what she was doing. "I called for help," the PM continued "I sounded the alarm. There was this... lightening ! This kind of er... um... electricity, and they all collapsed!"

"I think they're all dead." A sergeant announced, causing Tory to whimper.

"That's what I'm saying. He did it!" the PM pointed at the Doctor, "That man there!"

"I think you will find the Prime Minister is an alien in disguise." The Doctor stated confidently. The PM crossed his arms. The Doctor turned the police man beside him. "That's never going to work, is it?"

"Nope."

"Fair enough." The Doctor said with a shrug before grabbing Tory's hand it a tight grip and bolting from the room. The pair didn't make it far before security surrounded them. Tory looked at them fearfully. The Doctor put his hands in the air grinning, his right still holding Tory's left.

"Under the jurisdiction of the Emergency Protocols, I authorize you to execute this man and this woman!" The General roared. Security cocked their guns.

"Uh, well, now, yes." The Doctor started, "You see, eh... the thing is... if I was you, if I was going to execute someone by backing them against the wall, between you and me, little word of advice..." the lift doors behind the pair pinged open, "Don't stand them against the lift!" the pair stepped back and the Doctor forced the door shut with his sonic screwdriver. "Who are you with?" he asked suddenly.

"U.N.I.T." Tory managed to answer.

The Doctor nodded.

"Good people."

The lift doors pinged open revealing another Slitheen, the Doctor's blonde companion and the older brunet. The Slitheen roared. The Doctor smiled and looked around at the scene.

"Hello!" he said pleasantly. The doors shut again.

"Shouldn't we help them?" Tory asked, calming down; now was not the time to panic, panic and you're dead.

"Yep." The doors opened again and the Doctor stuck his head out before linking his hand with Tory's again and pulling her out of the lift.

He pulled her at a run down a flight of stairs so they could get back to the right floor, and backtracked when he heard the sergeant barking orders in the distance. They hid in a crevice next to a door as two Slitheen walked passed.

"We'll keep this floor quarantined as our last hunting ground before the final phase." It was the PM. The Doctor waited until they were out of sight before moving again. They crept down the corridor, past the lift trying to see were the two women had gone.

Suddenly a scream rang out causing the pair to break into a run, the Doctor dropping Tory's hand to grab a fire extinguisher. He kicked open the door and sprayed the white foam in the shocked faces of the three aliens.

"Out! With me!" he yelled. The blonde pulled a curtain down on one of the Slitheens heads and both women ran to stand behind him with Tory. "Who the hell are you?" he asked the brunet rudely.

"Harriet Jones, MP for Flydale North." She answered.

"Nice to meet you." He answered.

"Likewise." The Doctor blasted them again before leading the three women out the door.

"We need to get to the cabinet rooms!" the Doctor yelled at them.

"The Emergency Protocols are in there!" Harriet yelled back, "They give instructions on aliens!"

"Harriet Jones, I like you."

"And I like you too." She answered him. Then they were running again.

They made it into the Cabinet room but had no time to shut the door so the Doctor grabbed a bottle of brandy and held his sonic screwdriver to it.

"One more move and my sonic device will triplicate the flammability of this alcohol. Whoof ! We all go up. So back off." He ordered. The Slitheen hesitated. "Right then. Question time. Who exactly are the Slitheen?"

"They're aliens." Harriet answered.

"NO? Really?" Tory asked, sarcasm literally dripping from her words.

"Yes. I got that, thanks." He sounded bemused.

"Who are you, if not human?" the PM Slitheen asked.

"Who's not human?" Harriet turned to the blonde.

"He's not human." She answered jerking her head at the Doctor.

"He's not human?"

"Can I have a bit of hush?" the Doctor asked sharply.

"Sorry." Harriet replied.

"So, what's the plan?" he asked the Slitheen.

"But he's got a Northern accent." Harriet protested.

"Lots of planets have a North." The blonde answered again.

"Technically," Tory added, "all planets have a north."

"I said hush." He snapped, "Come on!" he waved the brandy threateningly. "You've got a spaceship hidden in the North Sea. It's transmitting a signal. You've murdered your way to the top of government, what for? Invasion?"

"Why would we invade this God forsaken rock?"

"Then something's brought the Slitheen race here, what is it?" the Doctor demanded.

"The Slitheen race?" one of them repeated.

"Slitheen is not our species." Another one explained, "Slitheen is our surname. Jocrassa Fel Fotch Pasameer Day Slitheen at your service."

"So, you're family." The Doctor conclude.

"It's a family business."

"Then you're out to make a profit. How can you do that on a "God forsaken rock"?" the Doctor asked.

"Ahhh... excuse me? Your device will do what? Triplicate the flammability...?"

"Is that what I said?" the Doctor muttered.

"You're making it up!" the Slitheen cried.

"Ah, well! Nice try. Harriet, have a drink. I think you're gonna need it." He offered her the brandy.

"Pass it to the left first." Harriet corrected.

"Sorry." He tried to hand it to the blonde but Tory grabbed it first.

"She's hardly old enough to drink!" Tory protested. The blonde looked insulted.

"Now we can end this hunt... with a slaughter." The Slitheen shuffled forwards. The Doctor folded his arms.

"Don't you think we should run?" the blonde asked.

"Fascinating history, Downing Street." The Doctor started, "Two thousand years ago, this was marsh land. 1730, it was occupied by a Mr. Chicken. He was a nice man. 1796, this was the cabinet room - if the cabinet's in session and in danger, these are about the four most safest walls in the whole of Great Britain." He pressed a switch near the door, "End of lesson." All of the window and door leading into the room were covered with metal plating, "Installed in 1991. Three inches of steel lining every single wall. They'll never get in." he explained to the three women.

"And how do we get out?" Tory demanded. There was a pause.

"Ah."

"Some super intelligent being you are!" Tory muttered, turning away.

The Doctor got Rose's, the blondes, boyfriend to hack into the U.N.I.T. database and launch a missile at number 10. The only way to save the Earth from WW3.

"Can I use your phone?" Tory asked Rose. She blinked.

"Sure." She handed it over.

"Be quick about it!" the Doctor yelled. Tory waved a hand to show she'd heard him and them dialled a number.

"Hi this is Jordan sorry I can't get to the phone right now, leave a message." The beep sounded.

"Jordan, I'm sorry." Tory whispered, "So sorry." The other three people in the room watched as she hung up the phone and handed it back. Tory sniffed once before forcing herself to calm down.

"How did you get here?" the Doctor asked suddenly, "I knew you looked familiar but I couldn't place it until now."

"What?" Tory asked dully.

"Oh yeah….." Rose agreed, "Wasn't she that woman that was on platform one?"

"What are you talking about?!" Tory demanded.

"The last time we saw you it was five billion years in the future." Tory stared at Rose open mouthed.

"It hasn't happened for you yet though." The Doctor mused.

"Can we focus now please!" Harriet called their attention back to the task at hand.

"Right!" Rose agreed.

The Doctor moved towards Tory and spoke into her ear.

"I'm taking you back to the TARDIS when this is though."

They hid in a cupboard when the missile hit on the odd chance they might survive. And they did.

They climbed out of the remains of number 10 slowly, Harriet grinned proudly.

"Made in Britain."

The Sergeant ran over.

"Are you alright?" he asked. Harriet flashed her ID card at him.

"Harriet Jones. MP, Flydale North. I want you to contact UN immediately, tell the ambassadors the crisis is over and they can step down. Go on, tell the news!"

"Yes, ma'am." He hurried away again. I looked away as they continued talking, ignoring it, not really paying attention until the Doctor tugged my arm and led me away.

We were somewhere on the Powell Estates when Tory's head started to hurt, she winced and grabbed her head. The Doctor and Rose tried to help her walk.

"Almost there!" The Doctor told her. Tory looked up to see an old fashioned police box, she screamed and vanished in a flash of silver light.


	4. What am I?

**What am I?**

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Tory was burning.

Tory was screaming.

Tory was dying.

Tory's eyes were ripped open as another wave of fire passed through her and pulsed outwards. All she could see was a golden light that seemed to radiate from her, silver sparks shot off her now bare skin; the fire having destroyed it long ago. She thought she could hear a voice sometimes, when her screaming was quieter, it was male and deep and oh so soothing. She didn't know who it was but what she did know shocked her; it seemed that the longer she was burning the easier and quicker she could think. After what felt like days she realised what was happening to her but the words felt alien in her mind…..regeneration…Time Lady…TARDIS!

She gasped as the burning increased and the full understanding of what those words meant hit her like a freight train. She was the first and last ever human-Time lord-TARDIS hybrid. More knowledge poured into her head at an overwhelming rate, all the memories her birth mother had locked away to keep her safe had resurfaced. Tory could remember and Tory could see, all that ever was, all that will be and all that could be. Tory was a Time Lady!

Meridian Particles; more unfamiliar words running thought her head, though her new knowledge let her understand what it meant; Tory had the power to travel in time without a capsule. Something the Time Lords had never really bothered to investigate and only the Time Agents of the 51st century used. The silver sparks from before had been this ability manifesting and keeping her safe from harm.

Suddenly the burning stopped. Tory kept her eyes shut as she took in a deep breath, she felt her chest rise and fall, could calculate here breathing rate in under a second, and listened to the double beat of the twin hearts in her chest.

Her eyes fluttered open slowly letting her see the room around her for the first time. The bright white floors and ceiling made her new eyes water and her whole body flinch. This drew her attention to her new self; her skin was slightly tanned, like she'd spent a few hours in the sun; she had freckles on her arms and legs; long thin artistic fingers; pulling some of her hair around she noted that it was the same shade of black as Jordan's, the same length too.

Tory looked around the room again hoping to spot a mirror. Instead she found a pile of clothes with a note. She stood, a little shaky, and walked towards it. She lifted the note and read the printed script.

_Tory,_

_I am the Face of Boe. You do not know me but I know you. I will meet you for the first time in my past, your future. At that time you told me about how and when you woke not realising that I was the one that did this for you. I have given you a selection of clothes I hope you find suitable. The sonic blaster is fitted with a perception filter that will stop people from noticing it unless you point it out to them, it will also prevent the Doctor realising that you are a Time Lady until his tenth regeneration it also has the benefit of giving you the same appearance as before your own regeneration so as not to damage the timeline. _

It ended there. Tory placed it to the side and started digging though the pile of clothes.

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Tory:*reading over Madd Madds's shoulder* OHHH!*yelling* What am I going to look like then?! 

Me: *rubs now permanently damaged ear* *deadpan* a monkey….

Tory: *silence* -.-

Me: *shrugs*

Timmy: *sniggers*

Legend-wait for it- Dary:*opens mouth to speak* 

Tory: *interrupts* that is a loooooooooong name!

Me: what can I say? My dad bought me a new teddy that came with the name Legend and he, been the massive fan of How I Met Your Mother, he is changed it. *shrugs*Sorry Dary.

Legend-wait for it- Dary: *in accent so posh it out does the Queen* It's quite alright my dear.

Me & Tory & Timmy: *blink*

Tory & Timmy: *glance at each other and burst out laughing* 

Me: *face palms*I work with children. 


	5. The End of the World

**The End of the World**

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_This is thoughts/telepathy._

**This is a computerised voice.**

)0(

Tory adjusted the collar of her pink and blue checked shirt as she studied herself in the mirror Boe had provided. Her hair was up in a bun to keep it out of the way and she was now fully clothed, the first thing she had chosen was a black set of knee high cowboy boots, next were dark blue jeans the ends of which got tucked into the boots, her belt doubled as a holster for her new sonic blaster, the shirt she was wearing under her checked one was a white holster top lastly she had her bracelet; the only thing that had survived her regeneration was a silver plated bracelet gifted to her by Jordan.

Tory looked over at the giant tank that held the 'being' she owed her life to, they were on their way to Platform One to watch the Earth in its final farewell; it was going to burn.

**Shuttles 5 and 6 now docking. Guests are reminded that platform 1 forbids the use of weapons, teleportation and religion. Earth Death is scheduled for 15:39, followed by drinks in the Manchester Suite.** The computer announced as the shuttle docked. Tory followed Boe out seeing the other aliens that had come to pay their respects moving around also.

_Come. _Boe said into her mind and she hurried to follow him. They approached the Manchester suite behind most of the other guests and could hear the Steward ordering his people around.

"Hurry now! Thank you, as quick as we can! Come along, come along! And now, might I introduce the next honoured guest, representing the forest of Cheem, we have Trees. Namely, Jabe, Lute and Coffa." One female tree and two male. "There will be an exchange of gifts representing peace. If you can keep the room circulating, thank you. Next, from the solicitors Jolco and Jolco, the Moxx of Balhoon." A little blue man on a hover chair. "And next, from Financial Family Seven, we have the Adherents of the Repeated Meme." A bunch of humanoid shapes wearing cloaks. "The inventors of hyposlip travel systems, the brothers Hop Pyleen. Thank you! Cal 'Spark Plug'. Mr. and Mrs. Pakoo. The Ambassadors from the City State of Binding Light." There was a dramatic pause, "Sponsor of the main event, please welcome the Face of Boe and his companion Victoria of Old Earth." Tory follow Boe through the doors, slightly surprised that she got an introduction.

The Adherents of the Repeated Meme approached them at once.

"A gift of peace in all good faith." They held out a large silver egg, Tory took it and placed it into her pockets.

"Thank you." Tory said with a slight bow, "In return I gift you," she paused a moment before reaching into her bigger-on-the-inside jeans pocket, "Skittles." She handed them the bright read packet before following the path that Boe had formed in his efforts to get to the Doctor.

Tory reached into her pocket again and pulled out another pack before popping one in her mouth, she bloody loved the things. Slightly surprised that Boe knew her so well she stopped beside him as he waited for the Doctor to notice him.

_Doctor._

The man turned.

_A gift of peace. _

Tory held out an unopened pack of Skittles.

"Where were you hiding those then?" Rose asked in surprise. Tory winked.

"They're bigger on the inside." Rose blinked. Tory pulled another pack out, how many of those things where in there? And handed it to Rose, "A gift of peace." Tory returned to her own packet and popped a red one into her mouth. "Having fun?"

"Yeah, it's great." Rose was still a little star struck by all the aliens from the way she was staring.

"And you sir Doctor?" Tory asked, Boe having moved off.

"Fantastic." He said with a wide grin.

"And last but not least," the Steward began again, "our very special guest. Ladies and Gentlemen, and Trees and Multiforms. Consider the Earth below. In memory of this dying world, we call forth The Last Human." Both Tory and the Doctor glanced at Rose to see her reaction as the doors opened and what looked like a vertical trampoline made of human skin was wheeled through by two men dressed head to foot in white, "The Lady Cassandra O'Brien Dot Delta Seventeen."

"Oh, now, don't stare." Cassandra spoke, "I know, I know it's shocking, isn't it? I've had my chin completely taken away and look at the difference! Look how thin I am." The Doctor was laughing silently while Rose just stared in a daze, "Thin and dainty! I don't look a day over two thousand. Moisturize me, moisturize me." One of the men sprayed her from a canister he was holding, "Truly, I am The Last Human." Rose moved forward for a better look, "My father was a Texan. My mother was from the Arctic Desert. They were born on the Earth and were the last to be buried in the soil. I have come to honour them and..." she sniffed, "_..._say goodbye. Oh, no tears." One of the men in white wiped her eyes, "No tears. I'm sorry. But behold! I bring gifts. From Earth itself, the last remaining ostrich egg." One of the staff placed it on display, "Legend says it had a wingspan of 50 feet and blew fire from its nostrils." Tory snorted, unable to help herself, the Doctor grinned beside her, "Or was that my third husband?" the Doctor laughed, "Who knows! Oh don't laugh. I'll get laughter lines!" a large jukebox was wheeled into the room, "And here, another rarity. According to the archives, this was called an iPod. It stores classical music from humanity's greatest composers." Tory blinked, amazed that they managed to get that wrong, "Play on!" Tainted Love by Soft Cell started to play.

Tory turned to the Doctor.

"May I have this dance?" Tory asked playfully.

"Of course."

They danced a tango across the room, earning applause from the other guests. Tory was turned to face where Rose had being standing earlier and noticed that she was fleeing the room.

"Doctor!" Tory let go of him and turned him just in time to see Rose leaving.

"Thanks for the dance." He told her before jogging to catch up to his companion.

Tory walked over to the other side of the room and pulled the silver egg out of my pocket, something didn't feel right about the bloody thing. She wrapped both her hands around it and used her TARDIS inheritance to hack into the system using her mind. It was a robot, a spider, designed to infiltrate and destroy Platform one!

Tory jumped to my feet and raced over to the face of Boe only to be knocked to the ground again as the whole Platform shuddered.

"Honoured guests may be reassured that gravity pockets may cause slight turbulence, thanking you." The Steward spoke over the intercom as Tory lifted herself back to her feet. Tory joined Boe as the Moxx of Balhoon was speaking.

"This is the Bad Wolf scenario..." Tory paused as she noticed the Doctor and Rose re-enter the room.

_Tory?_

She turned back to Boe and replayed the memory of what she had discovered.

_I see. _

"What can we do about it then?" she demanded.

_I'm sure that the Doctor has it all under control. _

)0(

"I'm going to kill that face!" Tory growled to herself as she helped the other passengers. The spiders had activated, destroying the Platforms shield and leaving the gathered aliens to die, it was all Cassandra's doing, but the Doctor had fixed it…..somehow.

He even managed to bring Cassandra to justice, she exploded when brought back into the heat of Platform one.

Tory was waiting in the shadows in the back of the Manchester suite, watching as the Doctor and Rose spoke. He took her hand and they walked away. Tory smiled at them as they passed her, unseeing.

"Right then," she muttered, "Time to face the music." She closed her eyes and vanished in a burst of silver Meridian Particles. She reappeared outside the door to her and Jordan's flat. She opened the door slowly.

"Where the 'ell have you being?" Jordan demanded from her place right in front of the door, "I was worried sick about you! You were in Downing Street for fucks sake!"

"I'm an alien!" Tory muttered grabbing Jordan's attention before she could start ranting.

"You what?"

"I'm an alien." Jordan stared at her friend for a moment before falling to the floor in a dead faint. "She took that better than I expected." Tory sighed before moving to help her friend.

)0(

Me: I love Jordan as a character! She's bloody brilliant!

Tory: and she's MY best mate!

Timmy: What about Madd Madds?

Tory: She's my sister! God keep up with the program dino!

Me: *grins*


	6. Jordan's Journeys: the Unquiet Dead

**Jordan's Journeys: The Unquiet Dead**

)0(

Me: Jordan's Journeys is an idea that came to me in my physics lesson on Thursday. I thought that the Doctor always has a companion and that because Tory has adventures off screen that she deserved one too! And so Jordan's Journeys were born! 

Timmy: I miss Pears….

Tory: what? That one you had those playdates with?

Timmy: yeah….

Tory: oh….*doesn't quite know what to say*

)0(

"You have got to be kidding me." Jordan muttered as she hung up the phone, "Oi! Alien-girl!"

"What?!" Tory yelled back from the kitchen.

"My parents just cancelled!"

"I told they hated me!" Tory yelled back.

"Yeah, yeah!" Jordan responded, "Time for plan B!" she seemed to be grinning. Tory cringed as she remembered what had happened last time Jordan had been forced to resort to a plan B, that horse had never been the same…all those feathers…Tory shuddered.

Jordan walked into the kitchen and picked up the tea Tory had left on the side for her while hiding the coffee from Tory, having Tory high on caffeine was never a good thing, it was nearly as bad as the Skittles and chocolate spread diet Tory went on whenever she left on one of her 'adventures'.

Jordan lent against the kitchen counter as she took a sip of the tea…ahh milk and no sugar just the way she liked it.

"So I was thinking,"

"That's never good." Tory smirked over her shoulder as she put the plate she was washing on the draining board.

"Shut it. Anyway, I was thinking that seeing as it's my birthday we could go on a trip."

"Where?" Tory asked.

"Oh I was thinking….1869." Tory froze. She put the mug she was half way through cleaning down and turned around, she raised a single eyebrow, "What?"

"I want to travel to 1869."

"What's with the sudden interest, eh?" Tory questioned carefully.

"I was re-reading my Charles Dickens and…" Jordan trailed off with a sheepish grin.

"Ah," Tory grimaced, "say no more," Jordan opened her mouth, "no really, no more, I can not stand that mans' books." Tory gave a theatrical shudder. Jordan glared but knew from experience that this particular argument would not end well.

Tory turned back to the sink and lifted the mug to continue washing it.

Jordan took another sip of her tea before placing her empty mug down on the side. Tory made a disapproving noise in her throat causing Jordan to roll her eyes, pick up her mug and bring it to her. Tory took it and washed it as well before draining the water. She wiped her wet hands on her jeans before facing Jordan.

"When do you want to go?" she asked with a sigh. Jordan just stared in shock before squealing in glee and hugging Tory for all she was worth.

"Thank you, thank you!" she chanted. Suddenly she jumped away and ran from the room yelling behind her, "Now go get me a proper dress for the occasion and tickets to one of his readings!"

"Slave driver." Tory muttered.

"I heard that! Now hop to it!"

"Yes ma'am!" Tory responded sharply before fading from sight.

It was a month after Tory had returned from the future and Jordan had taken Tory's status rather well. Informing U.N.I.T. however had not been quite as easy, at first they thought she was crazy, and then she proved it….. whole 'nother kettle of fish that one, Jordan mused as she packed her overnight bag. They had wanted her as a weapon she told them that she would consult and that Jordan was her contact and left. Jordan had gotten a promotion and a pay rise while Tory just had to work on the cases that the humans needed help with. A good deal as far as the two women were concerned.

Tory had shown Jordan her new appearance as well as U.N.I.T. so that they would know not to shoot her and now only used her perception filter to hide her sonic blaster and the fact she was a Time Lady.

When Tory returned she was carrying two large clothes bags. She placed the longer one on Jordan's bed, as she was the taller of the two, shot her a grin and walked out of the door, closing it behind her. Jordan unzipped the bag and smiled.

Jordan turned in her full length mirror to see the full effect, the pale beige dress brushed the floor and had a slight train hanging from the traditional bump in the back, it was embroidered around the bottom with brown thread in straight up down and across lines, the sleeves stopped just below her elbows and had slight tassels, the top itself looked like a jacket with the same tassels as the sleeves.

She pulled the corset down slightly as Tory knocked on the door.

"I'm decent!" Jordan called. Tory opened the door.

"It's nothing I haven't seen before, either way." She grinned.

"They why bother knocking?" Jordan turned and smiled as she saw what her friend was wearing; the dress was an even lighter shade of beige than Jordan's but it had black patterned lace frills on the front of the skirt, the top was in the same jacket style as her own but with full length sleeves that ended with black lace, the lace continued on the edge of the jacket and up the centre before twisting around the collar, where her neckline ended a bow the same colour as the dress rested. Her hair was twisted in a complicated French plait that left some curls hanging around her face.

"That's a nice look on you." Tory complimented.

"And you." Jordan returned.

"Let me do your hair!" Tory begged. When Tory was finished Jordan's hair was curled and in ringlets that were draped around her shoulders.

"Thank you."

"You are welcome," Tory grinned, helping Jordan to stand and then offering her arm, "My dear Miss Mason would you accompany me to the theatre?" Jordan grinned and linked their arms.

"Why yes I would Miss Williams."

)0(

The two women walked down the snow covered Cardiff street, arms linked laughing. Jordan was having the time of her life, history had always been one of her favourite subjects and now she was living it! Tory was just happy that her friend was happy, she wondered briefly if this was why the Doctor travelled with companions, Tory had told Jordan everything about her life even the Doctor and the woman had suggested taking off the perception filter many times so that the Doctor would be able to find her, Tory didn't know why she refused every time but Jordan had always looked at her in understanding and yet again Tory had no idea why; she'd never been too good with emotions.

However now that she was really considering it…she pulled the perception filter up to her eyes and sighed, Jordan watching on in silence. Tory smiled suddenly and turned it off. Jordan grinned at her before taking her arm again and leading her in the direction Tory said the theatre was in.

)0(

In the TARDIS the 9th Doctor jerked his head upright and ran to the console.

)0(

Tory and Jordan sat themselves as close to the stage as they could and waited with baited breath, on Jordan's' part, and amusement on Tory's for the great man himself to appear. When the lights dimmed Jordan grabbed Tory's arm in excitement. Tory rolled her eyes but applauded all the same when the curtains opened to reveal a slightly cubby man with dark hair, including moustache.

Tory grinned as she watched Jordan holding in a VERY undignified fan-girl squeal.

"Now, it is a fact," Dickens spoke and even Tory had to admit that this man had a talent for telling a story, "that there was nothing particular about the knocker on the door of this house. But let any man explain to me if he can, how it happened, that Scrooge, having his key in the lock of the door, saw in the knocker, without it's undergoing any intermediate process of change, not a knocker - but Marley's face." The audience gasped, "Marley's face! It looked at Scrooge as Marley used to look. It looked like..." an expression of horror and fear grew on his face, "Oh, my lord ! It looked... like that!" he pointed out into the centre of the audience, everyone turned to follow his finger, an older woman was standing in the centre of her row, her mouth wide open and a blue gas was escaping through it, "What phantasmagoria is this?" the woman screamed, the audience copied her actions and started running for the exists.

Jordan stared with her mouth open as Tory jumped to her feet; trying to get a better look.

"Stay in your seats," Dickens was yelling over the frantic screams, "I beg you. It is a lantern show, it's trickery." The gas moved around the room like it was searching for something. Tory grabbed Jordan's hand and pulled her to her feet just as the gas stopped coming from the woman and she collapsed into her chair.

Tory almost screamed herself as she spotted the 9th Doctor running up to the stage.

"We have to go!" she hissed at Jordan. The girl put two and two together when she noticed the man that matched the description of the Doctor that Tory had given her. Jordan gave Tory a glare and climbed up onto the stage with Dickens, Tory having no choice but to follow.

"Did you see where it came from?" the Doctor demanded as he jumped onto the stage.

"Ah. The wag reveals himself, does he?" Dickens growled, "I trust you're satisfied, sir!" the Doctor looked taken aback at the anger in the other man's voice.

"Oi! Leave her alone!" Rose yelled as she spotted another man and woman trying to take the body away, "Doctor, I'll get 'em!"

"Doctor!" Jordan interrupted whatever he was about to say, "It came for that woman!" she pointed out of the door that Rose had chased the couple through.

"Doctor?" Dickens repeated scornfully, "You look more like a navy."

"Did it say anything? Could it speak?" the Doctor walked towards Jordan as he spoke, scaring the woman slightly; she had read all of his files, she knew just what the Oncoming Storm could do. Tory stepped into his path sensing her friends' discomfort.

"No." she answered his questions, "It couldn't talk as gas, though it probably could when it was in that woman." He stared at her. The gas started to feed into one of the gas lamps, the Doctor barely turned.

"How did you know it was gas?"

Tory raised her chin defiantly.

"Tory." Jordan whispered from behind her. Tory seemed to visibly deflate before offering her hand to the Doctor.

"It's better if I show you." She explained, holding her hand out to him. He stared her in the eye for a moment before he took her hand eagerly. They pulled apart within five seconds the Doctor stared Tory in the eye for another before pulling her into a hug. Jordan grinned. When the Time Lords separated they were both grinning like the idiots Jordan thought they were.

"Rose!" the Doctor cried suddenly, running from the room. Jordan and Tory shared a grin, Dickens after glancing at the women chased after the Doctor.

"What did you do to him?" Jordan asked as they chased after the men.

"I showed him my memories." They got outside in time for a coach to pull up outside the doors, the Doctor opened the door.

"Get in then!" he ordered. The women obeyed, "Follow that hearse!" the Doctor ordered the driver.

"You can't do that, sir!" Dickens protested.

"Why not?" the Doctor demanded, casting a slightly hesitant look at Jordan who was sitting next to Dickens and looking rather shell-shocked making Tory laugh.

"Why not?!" Dickens repeated, "I'll give you a very good reason why not! This is my coach!"

"Everything in order, Mr. Dickens?" the driver asked hearing the raised voice of his employer.

"No! It is not!"

"What did he say?"

"Let me say this first. I'm not without a sense of humour..."

"Dickens?" the Doctor asked.

"Charles Dickens?"

"Oh yes." Jordan answered quietly making Tory snort.

"Yes." Dickens answered smugly.

"THECharles Dickens?" the Doctor asked again.

"Shall I remove the gentleman, sir?" the driver asked.

"Charles Dickens!" the Doctor grinned, "You're brilliant, you are! Completely 100% brilliant! I've read 'em all! Great Expectations, Oliver Twist and what's the other one, the one with the ghost?"

"A Christmas Carol?" Dickens suggested.

"No, no, no, the one with the trains..."

"The Signal Man?" Jordan suggested.

"That's it," the Doctor agreed, "terrifying!" Dickens looked extremely pleased, "The best short story ever written! You're a genius!"

"You want me to get rid of them, sir?" the driver asked.

"Er, no, I think they can stay."

"Honestly, Charles, can I call you Charles?" the Doctor continued without waiting for an answer, "I'm such a big fan."

"...what?" Dickens seemed confused, "A what?"

"Fan! Number One Fan, that's me." Jordan seemed like she wanted to argue that statement but Jordan nudged her and she stayed silent.

"How exactly are you a fan? In what way do you resemble a means of keeping oneself cool?"

"No, it means "Fanatic"," the Doctor corrected him, "devoted to. Mind you, I've gotta say, that American bit in Martin Chuzzlewit, what was that about?! Was that just padding or what? I mean, it's rubbish, that bit."

"I thought you said you were my fan." Dickens was disgruntled.

"Ah, well, if you can't take criticism... go on, do the death of Little Nell, it cracks me up. No, sorry, come on, faster!" the Doctor ordered the driver.

"Who exactly IS in that hearse?" Dickens asked.

"My friend. She's only nineteen, and it's my fault. She's in my care, and now she's in danger." The Doctor explained seriously.

"Why are we wasting my time talking about dry old books? This is much more important. Driver! Be swift! The chase is on!"

"Yes, sir!" the driver answered.

"Thatta boy, Charlie!" the Doctor said delighted.

"Nobody calls me Charlie." Dickens protested.

"The ladies do." The Doctor winked.

"Can I?" Jordan asked slightly breathlessly. Tory all out laughed.

"How do you know that?" Dickens asked slightly amazed.

"I told you... I'm your Number One..."

"Number One Fan, yes..." Dickens finished.

When the carriage stopped the Doctor offered his hand to help Tory out while Dickens did the same for Jordan.

"Why thank you good sir." Tory grinned.

"My pleasure, milady." The Doctor teased back.

They walked up to the door as a group and then the Doctor rang the bell.

"I'm sorry, sir, we're closed." A young serving girl opened the door.

"Nonsense!" Dickens protested, "Since when did an undertaker keep office hours? The dead don't die on schedule. I demand to see your master."

"He's not in, sir." She tried to shut the door but the irate human forced the door open again.

"Don't lie to me, child!" he told her angrily.

"I'm awfully sorry, Mr. Dickens, but the mater's indisposed." Tory watched over the servants shoulder as a gas lamp behind the girl flared.

"Having trouble with your gas?" Tory and the Doctor asked at the same time, they glanced at each other and then back at the girl.

"What the Shakespeare is going on?" Dickens demanded. The Doctor forced his way passed the girl and Tory followed him, he pressed his ear against the wall underneath the lamp, Tory did the same with her hand; using her abilities to scan the pipes.

"You're not allowed inside, sir! Ma'am!"

"There's something inside the walls." The Doctor muttered. Tory nodded in agreement as Jordan moved to her side, holding out a bag of Skittles to help her replace the energy she had just used when using her TARDIS abilities. The Doctor gave her a concerned glance as she leant back on Jordan for support.

"The gas pipes." Tory muttered, "Something's living inside the gas."

"That blue thing from the theatre?" Jordan asked.

"Yep." The Doctor answered as Tory had her mouth full of Skittles.

"Let me out! Open the door!" Rose's yelling came from further in the house.

"That's her." The group of four ran off to the rescue.

_He runs off to her rescue. Dickens's follows._

"Please, let me out!" Rose yelled again.

"This is my house!" an older gentleman yelled as the Doctor ran passed him. The banging noise Rose was making on the door was getting louder.

"Let me out! Somebody, open the door! Open the door!" the Doctor kicked the door in.

Rose was being held in the grasp of a once good-looking younger man and the same old woman from the theatre.

"I think this is my dance." The Doctor darted forward and pulled her out of the corpses' grip.

"It's a prank?" Dickens asked in amazement as both corpses turned to face the people crowded around the door, "It must be. We're under some mesmeric influence."

"No were not," Tory told him, laying a hand on his arm as her strength returned, "The dead are walking." The Doctor grinned.

"Hi!" he greeted Rose.

"Hi! Who's your friends?" she asked.

"Charles Dickens." The Doctor answered before looking at Jordan for her full name.

"Oh! Jordan Mason and Victoria Williams."

"Call me Victoria again Jordan and best friend or not I'm leaving you with the dinosaurs!" Tory growled.

"Oh." Rose blinked, "Okay."

"My name's the Doctor." He told the corpses, "Who are you, then? What do you want?"

"We're failing." The male spoke, his voice female, "Open the rift, we're dying. Trapped in this form, cannot sustain, help us." Both of them raised their heads to the ceiling and the blue gas left them with a scream as the bodies fell to the floor.

Everyone stared.

"Perhaps we should retire to the pallor?" Jordan suggested.

"This way Miss." The serving girl led the way.

)0(

The serving girl, Gwyneth, poured tea as Rose yelled at Sneed. Tory was sitting beside the Doctor with Jordan on his other side.

"First of all you drug me," Rose was saying, "then you kidnap me, and don't think I didn't feel your hands having a quick wander, you dirty old man." The Doctor sniggered, Tory elbowed him to shut him up.

"I won't be spoken to like this!" Sneed protested, looking around the room for support.

"Then you stuck me in a room full of zombies!" Rose continued, "And if that ain't enough, you swan off! And leave me to die! So come on, talk!"

"It's not my fault, it's this house!" Rose sat down as Sneed spoke, "It always had a reputation. Haunted. But I never had much bother until a few months back. And then the stiffs..." Sneed noted the offended look on Dickens face, "...the er, dear departed started getting restless."

"Tommyrot." Dickens announced.

"You witnessed it!" Sneed continued, "Can't keep the beggars down, sir! They walk. And it's the queerest thing that they hang on to scraps..."

Gwyneth poured the Doctor his tea.

"Two sugars, sir, just how you like it." Then she turned to Jordan, "Milk no sugar as always ma'am." As she walked away all three of them looked at her curiously.

"She knew how I liked my tea," Jordan muttered, "and she knew not to offer you any." She nudged Tory to get her attention.

"One old fella who used to be a sexton almost walked into his own memorial service! Just like the old lady going to your performance, sir! Just as she planned." Sneed was still trying to convince Dickens.

"Morbid fancy." Dickens refused to see reason.

"Oh, Charles, you were there." Jordan sighed.

"I saw nothing but an illusion." He protested.

"If you're going to deny it, don't waste my time. Just shut up." The Doctor ordered. Dickens sat back in his chair, stunned, "What about the gas?" the Doctor asked Sneed.

"That's new, sir, never seen anything like that."

"Means it's getting stronger, the rift's getting wider and something's sneaking through." The Doctor realised.

"What's the rift?" Rose asked.

"It's like a crack," Tory started to explain before the Doctor could open his mouth, "a weak point in space and time, it connects two places together sometimes things can even pass through it, it's the cause of most ghost stories." 

"That's how I got the house so cheap." Sneed muttered, "Stories going back generations. Echoes in the dark. Queer songs in the air and this feeling like a... shadow. Passing over your soul. Mind you, truth be told, it's been good for business. Just what people expect from a gloomy old trade like mine."

The Doctor left the room, following Dickens who must have snuck out while Sneed was talking, Rose, not wanting to be left alone with Sneed even with Tory and Jordan in the room wandered off. Jordan looked at Tory who was staring into the fire before pulling her up by the hand and following Rose.

"My father died years back." Rose was saying as Tory and Jordan entered the room.

"You've been thinking about him lately, more than ever." Gwyneth told her.

"I s'pose so... how do you know all this?"

"Mr. Sneed says I think too much. I'm all alone down here. I bet you've got dozens of servants, haven't you miss," she turned to face Tory and Jordan by the door, "and you as well ma'am."

"No, no servants where we're from." Jordan protested.

"And you've come such a long way." Gwyneth said dreamily.

"What makes you think so?" Rose asked.

"You're from London." She looked between Rose and Jordan, "I've seen London in drawings, but never like that. All those people rushing about. Half naked, for shame. And the noise... and the metal boxes racing past... and the birds in the sky... they're metal as well. Metal birds with people in them. People flying." She turned to Tory, "You the little orpan girl who builds her family unknowing it's the only way she'll ever have one, but you live in fear of being alone; you know that one day Jordan will die and you will carry on, the last time lady!" Rose gasped drawing Gwyneth's attention back to her, "And you, you've flown so far, further than anyone! The things you've seen... the darkness... the big bad wolf..." she staggered backwards, afraid, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry, miss!"

"S'alright..." Rose told her, shooting a concerned glace at a blankly staring Tory and Jordan who was standing beside her trying to get a response out of her.

"I can't help it," the girl explained, "ever since I was a little girl. My mum said I had the sight. She told me to hide it!" the Doctor walked into the room, glancing at Tory and Jordan before speaking making Rose and Gwyneth jump.

"But it's getting stronger. More powerful, is that right?"

"All the time, sir. Every night. Voices in my head." She answered.

"You grew up on top of the rift. You're part of it. You're the key." The Doctor told her, pulling out the sonic screwdriver and trying to scan Tory.

"I've tried to make sense of it, sir. Consulted with spiritualists, table wrappers, all sorts."

"Well, that should help. You can show us what to do."

"What to do where, sir?"

"We're going to have a séance." Gwyneth nodded and led Rose back to the parlour. The Doctor hit the sonic against the palm of his hand.

"What's wrong with her?" Jordan asked, she had given up trying to get a response out of her friend and was just holding her hand.

"I don't know; I can't get a reading from her." The Doctor said, frustrated, "She has most of the capabilities of a TARDIS so she could be jamming the signal or she could just have her shields up." He put the sonic away and rubbed the back of his head in frustration.

"Oh Tory." Jordan sighed.

)0(

"Don't trust the Geth!" Tory screamed as she jerked upright. The Doctor rushed to her side and Jordan stood beside her.

"shush." Jordan tried to comfort her but Tory was desperate.

"Doctor!" Tory shrieked.

"I'm here and we know, its alright."

Tory blinked.

"Oh, that's good." She smiled, "I'm going to faint again now." She did just that.

Jordan flopped into the seat she had jumped out of when Tory woke up.

"Thank you Doctor." She told the man who was stroking the hair out of her best friends face.

"Thank the TARDIS."

"Are your adventures always this dangerous?" Jordan asked after a moment remembering when they had being trapped by the Geth.

"Not all." the Doctor answered, "But quite a lot of 'em, yeah."

"Oh." The Doctor glanced at her.

"What?"

"She goes off on her

Own all the time and I worry and then to see just how bad it can get." Jordan stopped.

"But that's half the fun of traveling," the Doctor tried to explain.

"Oh I know," Jordan grinned, "And I wouldn't trade her for anything in the world."

"Agreed." Tory muttered, grinning up at the shocked human and Time Lord, "Agreed."

)0(

Me: the links for the images of the two dresses worn by Tory and Jordan are on my profile, I don't think my description did them justice so please go and check them out! *grins and walks out of room*

Tory & Timmy: *sneak into room and sit in front of laptop*

Legend- wait for it- Dary: *loudly* what are you doing?

Tory & Timmy: shush! 

Legend- wait for it- Dary: *quieter* what are you doing?

Timmy: we want to encourage more reader interaction!

Legend- wait for it- Dary: what?

Tory: we want more reviews! 

Legend- wait for it- Dary: why?

Timmy: Tory wants to know what people think of her adventures!

Tory: and I've managed to talk Madd Madds into agreeing to let me write in people who make detailed reviews or ask interesting questions! It took a year's supply of chocolate to do it though and even then she refused to add it to the story, said she wanted it to be a surprise!

Timmy: she's a strange human that one.

Legend- wait for it- Dary: indeed.


	7. Boom Town

Boom Town

)0(

Me: Honestly Tivia100, it just fit in with the story line *shrugs* but I'm going to lie and claim that I'm just THAT awesome! WOOP!

Legend-wait for it- Dary: Ignore the idiot that's typing she's had about 3 coffees in 2 hours.

Me: *runs screaming from room* MUST HAVE MORE COFFEE!

Legend-wait for it- Dary: *sighs* see what I mean? *follows*

Tory & Timmy: *enter room as they've being hiding from the high author.*

Tory: this story is rated T, this is because of sexual references,

Timmy: *interrupts* the actual sex is always placed in one-shots and posted separately!

Tory: *glares* I was getting to that! *takes calming breath* as I was saying, it is also T rated because of swearing. You have been warned.

)0(

Tory sighed as she got off the train in Cardiff Central station, her brain translating the Welsh into English. She cracked her neck and looked around. She was here for a local holiday while Jordan was busy with U.N.I.T; the girl was insisting on coming on her next adventure so Tory was stuck waiting until Jordan had free time to go.

Tory blinked as the head of Mickey Smith caught her eye, she followed him out of the station, having nothing better to do. He led her into Millennium Centre Square and Tory grinned as she spotted the TARDIS parked in front of the silver water sculpture. She let Mickey keep the led as he knocked on the door. A young, ruggedly handsome, man poked his head out. He was more Jordan's type than Tory's.

"Who the hell are you?" the man demanded.

"What d'you mean, who the hell am I? Who the hell are _you_?" Mickey demanded rudely.

"Captain Jack Harkness. Whatever you're selling, we're not buying."

"Get out of my way!" Mickey barged passed him and into the TARDIS, Jack seemed to smirk and then closed the door to follow him. Tory grinned and walked a short distance away to sit down and wait for the four to leave the TARDIS.

)0(

Me: *re-entering room with coffee in hand* Just to prevent any confusion the next section is in an almighty 3rd POV. 

Legend-wait for it- Dary: and that makes four! We're not going to sleep tonight…..*sighs*

)0(

_Inside the TARDIS, just after Mickey has entered and Jack has closed the door._

"Don't tell me," Jack said, "this must be Mickey." The Doctor was up on the second level on a ladder with a red flashing light attached to his head, Rose was standing by the console.

"Here comes trouble!" the Doctor greeted him cheerily, "How're you doing, Ricky boy?"

"It's Mickey!"

"Don't listen to him," Rose told him, "he's winding you up."

"You look fantastic." They grinned broadly and hugged.

"Aww, sweet, look at these two. How come I never get any of that?" Jack asked.

"Buy me a drink first." The Doctor answered.

"You're such hard work." Jack answered, "I'd rather ask Tory." Jack said with a wink. The Doctor did a double take.

"No." he growled. Jack grinned in a rather self-satisfied way.

"Jealous much?" Jack teased.

"Did you manage to find it?" Rose asked Mickey quickly to prevent the argument that she knew the Doctor and Jack would get into over Tory. Jack wasn't actually interested in Tory in anyway, at least Rose thought so, however Jack could in his own words "see the potential for fan-fucking-tastic sex between the two, and if anyone needed a good stress reliever it was the Doctor!"

"There you go." Mickey handed over her passport. Rose grinned and brandished the little red book at the Doctor.

"I can go anywhere now!"

"I told you, you don't need a passport!" the Doctor told her.

"It's all very well going to platform one and Justicia and the Glass Pyramid of San Kloon but what if we end up in Brazil? I might need it. You see, I'm prepared for anything." She stuck her tongue out at him, grinning.

"Sounds like you're staying, then." Mickey stated. An awkward silence fell on the group. After a moment Mickey smiled and attempted to lighten the atmosphere. "So, what're you doing in Cardiff?" he asked, "And who the hell's Jumping Jack Flash? I mean, I don't mind you hanging out with big-ears up there."

"Oi!" the Doctor yelled down at him.

"Look in the mirror." Mickey returned. The Doctor shook his head and turned back to his work, "But this guy, I dunno, he's kinda..."

"Handsome?" Jack suggested with a smirk.

"More like cheesy." Mickey answered.

"Early 21st Century slang. Is cheesy good or bad?" Jack asked.

"It's bad."

"But bad means good, isn't that right?" Jack grinned.

"Are you saying I'm not handsome?" the Doctor asked as he climbed down the ladder he had been standing on to do repairs. Everyone ignored him.

"We just stopped off." Rose started to explain, "We need to refuel. Thing is, Cardiff's got this rift running through the middle of the city. It's invisible, but it's like an earthquake fault between different dimensions..."

"The rift was healed back in 1869..." the Doctor added.

"Thanks to a girl named Gwyneth," Rose continued, "'cos these creatures called the Gelth, they were using the rift as a gateway but she saved the world and closed it."

"But closing a rift always leaves a scar," Jack spoke up, "and that scar generates energy, harmless to the Human Race."

"But perfect for the TARDIS," the Doctor continued, "so just park it here for a couple of days right on top of the scar and..."

"Open up the engines, soak up the radiation..." Jack said excitedly.

"Like filling her up with petrol and off we go!" Rose dumbed it down. Jack hi-fived her.

"Into time!" he announced. The Doctor and Rose hi-fived before they spoke together.

"And space!"

"Whoo!" Rose yelled happily. Mickey just stared at them.

"My God, have you seen yourselves? You all think you're so clever, don't you?" the three glanced at each other.

"Yeah!" the Doctor grinned.

"Yeah!" Rose agreed.

"Yep !" Jack finished with a friendly slap to Mickey's cheek.

)0(

Tory: and now back to me! *grins*

)0(

Tory watched as the Doctor, Rose, Jack and Mickey all piled out of the TARDIS. The Doctor started glancing around as soon as he closed the door, as if sensing Tory.

Tory grinned and decided to go for the dramatic. She launched herself from the bench she was sitting on and ran towards the group.

"Doctor!" she cried happily. He spun around and grinned as he grabbed her into a hug.

"Speak of the devil." Jack muttered. Tory backed away from the Doctor and gave Jack a confused look.

"Do I know you?" she heard the Doctors snort of amusement behind her. Jack didn't even pause.

"No, but I know you and I'd love to get to know you better." He winked; the Doctor's arm around Tory's waist tightened slightly but she didn't notice.

)0(

Me: I just need to say that at this point Tory has only slight romantic feelings towards the Doctor and she doesn't even realise it yet, the Doctor feels the same way and Jack noticed when he first met Tory, in The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances which Tory hasn't done yet herself. Jack is trying to get the two to realise but it's not working yet, there will be no romance until 10 comes to call.

)0(

"What are you captain of?" Mickey asked, "The Innuendo Squad?"

"Apparently." Tory drawled. Jack made a 'whatever' sign at the two and walked off a little way.

"I'm Victoria," Tory introduced herself to Mickey.

"Mickey Smith." He smiled.

"Mi'lady." The Doctor offered Tory his arm.

"Why thank you, my good sir." She took it and they started to walk off.

"Wait!" Mickey called after them, "Er, the TARDIS, we can't just leave it. Doesn't it get noticed?"

"Yeah," Jack agreed, having walked back into earshot, "what's with the police box? Why does it look like that?"

"It's a cloaking device." Rose explained.

"It's called a chameleon circuit." The Doctor started to explain only to get cut off by Tory.

"This is my area of expertise," the Doctor nodded and allowed her to continue, Jack muttering 'whipped' in Rose's ear, "The TARDIS is meant to disguise itself wherever it lands; what you would call sensors in the 'skin' of the TARDIS scan and recognise nearby objects that give the area a planet and time region, the TARDIS than takes on an appearance that will allow it to blend in; like if we were in Ancient Rome the TARDIS would probably be a statue on a plinth. I however have no idea why it looks like a 1960's police box." Tory finished looking questionably at the Doctor.

"I landed in the 1960s," the Doctor explained, "it disguised itself as a police box, and the circuit got stuck."

"She." Tory corrected, "Your TARDIS is a she."

"How do you know that?" Mickey asked.

"I'm a TARDIS myself." Tory answered.

"But you look human!" Mickey protested.

"And you look Time Lord." The Doctor and Tory answered at the same time with a grin, "We came first."

"Hang on, how can you be a ship and a Time….Lady?"

Tory very much wanted to answer 'magic' but restrained herself.

"I was conceived by a Time Lord and a human possessed by the heart of a TARDIS, its soul." Tory looked sad for a moment and the Doctor squeezed her hand.

"I'm sorry." Rose told her, remembering what the Doctor had told her about the war.

"It's okay," Tory grinned suddenly, surprising those unused to her mood swings, "I call myself a HTL-TARDIS." Jack snorted.

"Human-Time Lord-TARDIS?" he asked, grinning.

"Obviously." Tory drawled, smirking; she quite liked this Jack.

"So it copied a real thing?" Mickey asked, bringing them back to the original topic, "There actually was police boxes?"

"Yeah, on street corners." The Doctor explained this time, "Phone for help before they had radios and mobiles. If they arrested someone, they could shove them inside until help came. Like a little prison cell."

"Why don't you just fix the circuit?" Jack asked, trying to move towards Tory but the Doctor turned her away subtlety. Jack grinned.

"I like it!" the Doctor grinned, "Don't you?"

"I LOVEit!" Rose exclaimed, patting the side of the box as she spoke.

"So does the TARDIS." Tory added.

"You talk about it like it's alive." Jack phrased the question as a statement.

"'Cause she is." Tory explained.

"There's no police boxes anymore, so doesn't it get noticed?" Mickey asked.

"Ricky, let me tell you something about the Human Race. You put a mysterious blue box slap bang in the middle of town and what do they do?" The Doctor asked seriously. Mickey opened his mouth to reply but the Doctor cut him off, "Walk past it. Now stop your nagging, let's go and explore!" he walked off taking Tory with him due to their link arms, Rose grabbed Mickey and pulled him along at a jog to catch up with Jack admired everyone's arse's from the rear.

)0(

Me: Pun very much intended *winks*I love coffee.

Tory, Timmy and Legend-wait for it- Dary: *sigh*

)0(

"What's the plan?" Rose asked happily as they walked.

"I don't know! Cardiff. Early 21st Century." He listed as Rose bounced up and down excitedly, "And the wind's coming from the... East. Trust me, safest place in the universe." Tory slapped him on the arm lightly.

"Now you've jinxed it!" she laughed.

They made their way into a restaurant along Cardiff bay and sat down near the window. Tory got up to go and order their food and the other four started to listen to one of Jack's stories.

"I swear, six feet tall and with tusks..." the group was laughing hard as Jack spoke when Troy returned.

"You're lying through your teeth!" the Doctor argued as Tory placed a huge place of chips in easy grabbing range of everyone at the table before pulling a jar of chocolate spread out of her pocket, with spoon, and eating it.

"I'd've gone bonkers! That's the word, bonkers!" Rose laughed.

"I mean," Jack continued as the group laughed, "it turns out the white things are tusks and I mean tusks!And it's woken, and it's not happy..."

"How could you not know it was there?" the Doctor asked. Tory reached into her pocket and pulled out the bag of Skittles, ignoring the strange looks she was getting from nearby customers, and the mother that was glaring as her son asked desperately to do the same thing, she poured the Skittles into the jar and continued to eat.

"And we're standing there, fifteen of us, naked..."

"Naked?!" Rose exclaimed.

"And I'm like, oh, no, no, it's got nothing to do with me! And then it roars, and we are running. Oh my God, we are running! And Brakovitch falls, so I turn to him and I say..."

"I knew we should've turned left!" Mickey interrupted making everyone laugh all the harder.

"That's my line!" Jack protested playfully.

"I don't believeyou, I don't believe a word you say ever_, _that is so brilliant!" Rose grinned. The Doctor was distracted as Jack kept talking, staring at a paper that a man across the room was reading. The smile vanished off the Doctors face. He stood, unnoticed by the humans but with Tory watching him. "Did you ever get your clothes back?" Rose asked.

"No," Jack answered, "I just picked him up went right for the ship, full throttle, didn't stop until I hit the spacelanes, I was shaking! It was unbelievable, I'm freaking out and by the time I got there I was fifteen light-years away I was like this!" Jack held out his hand to demonstrate as the Doctor walked away and grabbed the paper out of a man's hand, he stared at the front page before looking up and meeting Tory's gaze.

"And I was having such a nice day." He sighed causing the humans to fall silent and look over at him. He held up the paper it read; New Mayor, New Cardiff and had a picture of a rather fat blonde holding her hand as if to hide her face but failing, the picture was of Margaret Slitheen.

"Bugger," Tory sighed, "Jordan is going to kill me."

)0(

Me: any italic's is texting!

)0(

The five of them walked up and into the town hall like they owned the place. They paused in the entrance hall.

"According to intelligence," Jack spoke purposefully, "the target is the last surviving member of the Slitheen family, a criminal sect from the planet Raxacoricofallapatorious, masquerading as a human being, zipped inside a skin suit. Okay, plan of attack, we assume a basic fifty seven/fifty six strategy, covering all available exits on the ground floor. Doctor, you go face-to-face, that'll designate Exit One, I'll cover Exit Two, Rose, you're Exit Three, Mickey Smith, you take Exit Four. Have you got that?"

"I'm going with Mickey." Tory stated. The Doctor glanced at her before returning to staring at Jack with mild surprise.

"Excuse me. Who's in charge?" the Doctor asked sternly.

"Sorry." Jack answered, "Awaiting orders, sir."

"Right." His voice deepened with authority, "Here's the plan." He paused and beamed, his voice returning to normal, "Like he said. Nice plan. Anything else?"

"Present arms." Jack ordered, the humans and the Doctor all pulled out mobile phones while Tory blinked at them.

"Ready!"

"Speed dial?" Jack checked. All the phones beeped.

"Yup."

"Ready."

"Check."

"See ya in hell." Jack said with a lazy grin before walking off to the right. The Doctor and Rose headed off in the same direction but parted as they reached a hallway. Mickey looked confused before Tory pulled him towards the left.

)0(

"Slitheen heading North." The Doctor said over the phone.

"Oh my God." Mickey said stunned before Tory pulled him into a run. The managed to doge the cleaning lady and got outside just in time for Tory to launch herself at Margaret and grab her around the waist. The two females fell to the floor, shattering the teleport device Margaret was trying to build.

"Tory!" Jack yelled as he arrived on scene to find Mickey standing over Tory who had Margaret lying on the floor face down and was literally sitting on her back eating Skittles.

"Mickey the idiot." The Doctor greeted as he and Rose arrived.

"This is persecution." Margaret protested from the floor, "Why can't you leave me alone? What did I ever do to you?"

"You tried to kill me and destroy this entire planet." The Doctor answered.

"Apart from that." she said dismissively.

Jack pulled Tory to her feet and then lifted Margaret up, none too gently.

"Come on then." The Doctor smiled cheerily and led the way back inside. The group walked to the exhibition room and entered, a giant banner hung across the far wall proclaiming the name of the project and a model of a nuclear power station stood in the middle of the room.

"So, you're a Slitheen," the Doctor spoke, facing Margaret, "you're on Earth, you're trapped. Your family get killed but you teleport out, just in the nick of time. You have no means of escape. What do you do? You build a nuclear power station." He gestured at the model in the middle off the room drawing Jack and Rose's attention to it, "But what for?"

"A philanthropic gesture. I've learnt the error of my ways." Margaret tried to bluff.

"Doubt it." Tory snorted pulling out her phone to check her messages and finding one from Jordan.

_Not in any trouble I hope?_

Tory grinned before replying:

_Me? Never! ;)_

"And it just so happens to be right on top of the rift." The Doctor continued drawing Tory's attention back to the other people in the room.

"What rift would that be?" Margaret asked innocently.

"A rift in space and time." Jack explained, "If this power station went into meltdown, the entire planet would go schwwwupboom!"

"This station is designed to explode the minute it reaches capacity." The Doctor stated as he studied the model.

"Didn't anyone notice?" Rose asked incredulous, "Isn't there someone in London checkingthis sort of stuff?"

"U.N.I.T. might have had a look," Tory mused, "but they probably wouldn't have really noticed anything odd and it never passed my desk so I wouldn't have seen it either way."

"We're in Cardiff_. _London doesn't care!" Margaret scoffed, "The South Wales coast could fall into the sea and they wouldn't notice." She stopped suddenly horror dawning on her face, "... Oh... I sound like a Welshman. God help me, I've gone native."

Tory laughed at that.

"I like you." She announced, the Doctor gave her a look, "apart from the whole destroy the Earth thing, bad Margaret!" Tory tried to cover herself, earning an eye roll.

"But why would she dothat?" Mickey asked, "A great big explosion, she'd only end up killing herself."

"Blowing stuff up is therapeutic." Tory answered with a straight face, "Blowing up a planet is like shooting cans for some of the race's out there." Mickey glanced at her shocked.

"She's got a name, you know." Margaret snapped, bringing his attention back to her.

"She's not even a she, she's a... thing." Mickey muttered in disgust.

"Just like to point out that technically the Doctor, Jack and I are 'things' by you definition." Tory frowned at him. Mickey opened his mouth but stopped whatever he was going to say and just nodded at her.

"Oh, but she's clever..." the Doctor muttered eyeing Margaret before yanking the model apart and flipping the middle section over revealing a giant circuit board underneath, "Fantastic." He grinned.

"Is that a tribophysical waveform macro-kinetic extrapolator?!" Jack moved closer excitedly.

"Couldn't have put it better myself." The Doctor agreed, Jack took it away for a better look.

"Ooh, genius!" he muttered. The Doctor moved away slightly looking at the banner holding the project name, 'Blaidd Drwg'. "You didn't build this." Jack spoke to Margaret.

"I have my hobbies. A little tinkering..." Margaret tried to brag.

"No, no, no, I mean, you reallydidn't build this. Way beyond you." Jack explained further. Tory's phone made a noise drawing her attention back to it.

_Really?_

_I met the Doctor. _Tory replied.

"I bet she stole it." Mickey spoke up suddenly.

"It fell into my hands." Margaret agreed.

"Is it a weapon?" Rose asked worried.

_In Cardiff?_

_Yep._

Jack placed the extrapolator on the floor.

"It's transport." He explained, "You see, the reactor blows, the rift opens, phenomenal cosmic disaster, but thisthing shrouds you in a forcefield, you have this energy bubble, zzhum, so you're safe. Then you feed it coordinates, stand on top, and ride the concussion all the way out of the solar system."

"It's a surfboard!" Mickey realised.

_Again?!_

_Yep._

"A pan-dimensional surfboard, yeah." Jack agreed.

"And it would've worked." Margaret started bitterly before Tory interrupted.

"If it wasn't for you meddling kids!" she grinned as Rose snorted, Jack smirked and the Doctor rolled his eyes.

"I would've surfed away from this dead-end dump and back to civilisation." Margaret continued as if Tory hadn't spoken making her pout.

"You'd blow up a whole planet just to get a lift?" Mickey asked incredulous.

"Like stepping on an anthill." Margaret sneered.

"Be careful," Tory snapped, "we call this 'anthill' home!"

"How'd you think of the name?" the Doctor asked suddenly, staring up at the banner.

"What, Blaidd Drwg?" Margaret shrugged, "It's Welsh."

"I know, but how did you think of it?"

"Chose it at random, that's all I dunno. Just sounded good. Does it matter?" she asked. The Doctor turned to face the group, a frown on his face.

"Blaidd Drwg." He muttered.

"What's it mean?" Rose asked.

"Bad Wolf." Tory answered. Rose span to face her, looking scared.

"But I've heard that before, Bad Wolf. I've heard that lots of times..."

"Everywhere we go." The Doctor mused, "Two words. Following us. Bad Wolf."

"How can they be following us?" Rose asked with actual fear in her voice. The Doctor stared into space for a few moments.

"Nah!" he exploded suddenly, making everyone in the room jump, "Just a coincidence! Like hearing a word on the radio then hearing it all day. Never mind! Things to do." He clapped his hands together, "Margaret, we're gonna take you home."

"Hold on, isn't that the easy option, like letting her go?" Jack muttered in Tory's ear.

"No," she answered, quietly, "they have the death penalty." Jack didn't answer as they watched Rose and the Doctor joking around before Margaret interrupted them.

"They have the death penalty." She announced, no one spoke, "The family Slitheen was tried in its absence many years ago and found guilty. With no chance of appeal. According to the statutes of government, the moment I return, I am to be executed. What do you make of that, Doctor?" she held the Doctors stare, "Take me home and you take me to my death."

"Not my problem." He answered indifferently.

)0(

They made it back to the TARDIS easily. The Doctor and Jack were messing with the extrapolator and the TARDIS console trying to get them to interact without damaging each other. Mickey and Rose stood to the side, leaning on the railing while Tory did the same on the railing next to the door, her phone in hand.

_Doesn't he ever go anywhere else? _Jordan had replied to Tory's last message.

_Probably._

_Do you want me to come down?_

_Nah, they'll be gone by morning and I'll be back tomorrow._

_kk. See ya then. _

Tory put her phone away and finally noticed the rather awkward atmosphere. She glanced around but no one met her eyes accept Margaret, Tory raised a questioning brow and Margaret smirked. Tory shrugged before walking out the door, the Doctor staring after her.

Outside was cool and dark, she wondered back down to the see front and leant on the railing with a sigh.

)0(

Suddenly a rumbling noise made itself known, Tory jerked out of her thoughts and spun to face the TARDIS. The rift was opening and the TARDIS was screaming. Tory grabbed the side of her head and fell to her knees in shared pain as the telepathic machine made its agony known.

Glass shattered in the nearby buildings. Tory tore to her feet, trying to ignore the pain and ran back up to the TARDIS. She yanked the door open and saw Jack running around the console in a panic. She staggered up the ramp and grabbed hold of it for support.

Jack desperately ripped the connections between the TARDIS and the extrapolator trying to prevent whatever was happening.

"What the hell are you doing?" the Doctor yelled as he entered the ship.

"It just went crazy!" Jack yelled back. The Doctor ran up to the console, shooting a concerned look at Tory as she grabbed her head again.

"It's the rift!" he realised, "Time and space are ripping apart. The whole city's gonna disappear!" the console gave a small explosion.

"It's the extrapolator!" Jack yelled, "I've disconnected it but it's still feeding off the engine! It's usingthe TARDIS. I can't stop it!"

"Never mind Cardiff, it's gonna rip open the planet!" Rose burst in the doors.

"What is it? What's happening?!"

"Oh, just little me!" Margaret said gleefully one of her skin-suit arms dropping to the floor letting her grab Rose around the neck with her Slitheen claw. The Doctor tried to dart forward, "One wrong move and she snaps like a promise." She threatened.

"I might've known." The Doctor snarled.

"I've had you bleating all night," Margaret scoffed as she moved closer to the console, Rose still in her hand, "poor baby, now shut it." She turned to Jack, "You, fly boy, put the extrapolator at my feet." He hesitated and Margaret tightened her grip around Rose's throat. Jack looked to the Doctor for help and he nodded, Jack did as he was told, "Thank you." Margaret spoke pleasantly, "Just as I planned."

"I thought you needed to blow up the nuclear power station." Rose managed to gasp out.

"Failing that, if I were to be... arrested... then anyone capable of tracking me down would have considerable technology of their own. Therefore, they would be captivated by the extrapolator. Especially a magpie mind like yours_, _Doctor. So the extrapolator was programmed to go to Plan B!" she pulled Rose's hair roughly, making her whimper, "To lock onto the nearest alien power source and open the rift." She looked around the TARDIS is awe, "And what a power source it found... I'm back on schedule... thanks to you."

"The rift's gonna convulse." Jack spat, "She'll destroy the whole planet." Tory fell to her knees, no longer able to stand both men shot her concerned looks but were too afraid for Rose to move.

"And you with it!" she growled, she pushed Rose aside and stepped onto the extrapolator but still kept her claw around the blonde girls neck, "While I ride this board over the crest of the inferno all the way to freedom. Stand back boys... surf's up." Suddenly the panel in front of Margaret opened up a bright orange light flooded out of it, a tendril extending to Tory who jerked upright, her eyes glowing with the light.

"Opening the rift would destroy me." Tory spoke, her voice came out deeper than normal; like many voices all speaking at once.

"So sue me."

"It's not just any old power source." The Doctor explained with a smug grin, "It's the TARDIS. My TARDIS. The best ship in the universe."

"It'll make wonderful scrap."

"What's that light?" Rose struggled to see.

"My soul Rose Tyler," Tory spoke, but it wasn't Tory controlling her it was the TARDIS, "And you Margaret have laid it bear. The power of the vortex, the power of this body and my own shell unleashed." Tory's chin arched up proudly, "We are alive," Tory's own voice was more prominent now, speaking with the TARDIS, "Look at the light, look into us and see." 

"It's ... so bright..." her voice was dreamy.

"Look at it, Margaret..." the Doctor spoke.

"... Beautiful..."

"Look inside, Blon Fel Fotch. Look at the light." She stared, transfixed her grip on Rose loosened and Jack darted forward pulling her out of the way. A blissful smile spread across her face she looked up at Tory and then the Doctor.

"Thank you..." she whispered before vanishing in a blast of light as her body-suit flopped to the floor.

The Doctor sprang into action, darting around the console.

"Don't look, stay there, close your eyes!" he ordered his companions while Tory stood perfectly still, her eyes still glowing but her Meridian particles flashing out around her like an aura. She held her hand out and the TARDIS energy flowed back down it and into the console, the panel slamming back down.

Tory swayed on the spot before falling into the waiting arms of the Doctor.

"That's gonna hurt in the morning." Tory gasped. Her Meridian particles still surrounding her, she started to fade at the edges as the silver light got stronger. Tory vanished leaving the Doctors arms empty.

)0(

Me: updates from now on are probably going to be once a month but I will try and get them out faster.


	8. The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances

The Empty Child

)0(

Me: please forgive the late update! I had exams and revision and….it was a bad two months and its only going to get worse. I tried to make up for it though! Promise! I've edited the last chapter, removed some of the mistakes and I've uploaded two chapters at once! Enjoy!

)0(

Tory woke up slowly, stirring on the hard medical bed that had been assigned to her as part of the overnight nursing assignment that Doctor Constantine had asked her to perform with him. The man himself was the reason she was waking as he poked her gently in the side with his walking stick.

"What?" she groaned.

"Come along girl." He said, backing away as she sat up, swung her legs over the side of the bed and started pulling on her boots, "It's time for the night rounds." He waited for her outside the door to the room as she made sure her dress, that she had slept in just to make getting up easier, was still fastened properly. "I don't know what I'll do once you've gone." He muttered as she closed the door behind her and they started to walk around the mostly abandoned building.

"You'll be fine Doctor, it's not like the patients do much." She joked weakly.

"Indeed." The man agreed, without humour.

"Are they still…"

"The same? Yes. I don't know why you keep expecting them to be different every time you see them." Tory shrugged. "How long until you leave girl?" the Constantine asked suddenly.

"I should be setting out today, Lord knows, I've worried Jordan long enough." Constantine hummed gesturing for Tory to continue as he checked one of the gas masked patients for a heartbeat. "But I'm still not sure if my transport will even work." Tory trailed off.

"Do not assume me ignorant girl, a flash of silver light is not a normal way for a young lady to appear on the steps of a hospital. You're lucky the army wasn't in residence at that point; they'd 'ave had you out of here faster than I could blink!" Tory stayed silent as they entered the last ward.

Rows of the gas masked patients lined the wall and a balding, older man was standing over one. He turned as he heard the door open.

"You'll find them everywhere." Constantine told him, not at all bothered that a strange man had appeared in his hospital, "Every bed in every ward. Hundreds of them." Tory stepped out from behind him and grinned as she recognised the Doctor's profile, the Time Lord not some random human. The 9th regeneration of the Doctor was staring at one of the patients and didn't notice her.

"Yes, I saw." He agreed, "Why are they still wearing gas masks?"

"They're not." Constantine told him flatly, "Who are you?"

"He's the Doctor," Tory answered bringing both men's' attention to her, the Doctor grinned while Constantine frowned.

"Tory!" the Doctor called to her happily. Tory grinned. Constantine coughed, pointedly. "Nancy sent me." The Doctor explained.

"Nancy?" Tory repeated.

"That means you must've been asking about the bomb." Constantine stated.

"Yes." The Doctor agreed.

"What do you know about it?" Constantine demanded.

"Nothing." The Doctor lied, Tory narrowed her eyes at him; there had to be a reason he was asking! "Why I was asking. What do you know?"

"Only what it's done." Tory answered for him.

"These people," the Doctor continued, "were they all caught up in the blast?"

"None of them were." Constantine was about to laugh at the shocked look on the Doctors face but it turned into a hacking cough half way through, Tory steered him to a chair in the centre of the room, careful not to touch his skin. The Doctor took a few steps towards the pair.

"You're very sick." He stated.

"Dying, I should think," Constantine agreed, "I just haven't been able to find the time. Are you a doctor?" Tory tutted at him.

"No more of that defeatist attitude!" she protested, "How do you expect to defeat the Germans if you continue on like that?"

"I have my moments." The Doctor answered the question with a smile at Tory and her fussing.

"Have you examined any of them, yet?"

"No." the Doctor answered.

"Don't touch the skin." Tory warned him as he began to move.

"Which one?"

"Anyone." She answered forebodingly.

The Doctor's eyebrows rose but Tory didn't notice as she continued to try and make Constantine as comfortable as possible, the Doctor felt the smallest flash of jealously at the soft look in Tory's eye as she cared for the old man but squashed it down, she wasn't the Doctor's to claim.

)0(

Me: you have no idea how many times I had to rewrite that last paragraph to make it make sense to anyone aside from me! All the 'he's'!

)0(

The Doctor pulled out his sonic, shaking his head to get rid of his thoughts and scanned one of the bodies.

"Conclusions?" Constantine asked.

"Massive head trauma, mostly to the left side..." the Doctor answered clinically, moving the sonic over the chest area, "Partial collapse of the chest cavity, mostly to the right. There's some scarring on the back of the hand and the gas mask seems to be fused to the flesh but I can't see any burns." Tory stepped away from Constantine and walked slightly closer to the Doctor.

"Look at another one." She advised him. He did as he was told.

"This isn't possible." He protested.

"Examine another." The older looking man barked. Tory grabbed the Doctor's hand as he passed her and followed him to the next bed, receiving a comforting squeeze.

"This isn't possible!" the Doctor protested as his exam results came up the same.

"No." Constantine agreed.

"They've all got the same injuries!"

"Yes."

"Exactly the same."

"Yes."

"Identical, all of them. Right down to the scar on the back of the hand." Suddenly the Doctor pulled Tory's hands up to his face before scanning them.

"I'm fine," she reassured him, "I made sure not to touch." He stared into her eyes for a moment before nodding; Tory blushed slightly at the attention but ignored her inner Jordan as she squealed in delight. Tory glanced back at Constantine, trying desperately hard to erase the damning scar on the back of his hand.

"How did this happen?" the Doctor demanded, "How did it start?" Tory stayed silent and let the human explain.

"When that bomb dropped, there was just one victim."

"Dead?"

"At first." The human continued, "His injuries were truly dreadful. By the following morning, every doctor and nurse who had treated him, who had touched him, had those exact same injuries. By the morning after that, every patient in the same ward had the exact same injuries. Within a week, the entire hospital. Physical injuries, as plague. Can you explain that? What would you say was the cause of death?"

"The head trauma." The Doctor answered.

"No."

"Asphyxiation."

"No."

"The collapse of the chest cavity..."

"No."

"All right. What was the cause of death?" The Doctor asked.

"There wasn't one." Tory told him quietly, he turned to face her frowning.

"They're not dead." Constantine elaborated before hitting his walking stick against a steel bin. All the patients sat up. The Doctor's shock showed clearly on his face. "It's all right. They're harmless. They just... sort of, sit there. No heartbeat, no life signs of any kind. They just... don't die."

"And they've just been left here?" The Doctor asked looking around, keeping Tory behind him but not noticing the subconscious protective gesture, "Nobody's doinganything?" The patients lay down again.

"We try and make them comfortable, what else is there?" Constantine asked.

"Just you? You're the only two here?"

"I'm repaying a debt." Tory explained, "He found me when I arrived here and offered me a place to stay in return I've helped him this last year, today was my last day."

"Before this war began," Constantine spoke up, "I was a father and a grandfather. Now I am neither. But I am still a doctor."

"Yeah." The Doctor was lost in his own thoughts and didn't notice what he was saying, "Know the feeling."

"I suspect the plan is to blow up the hospital and blame it on a German bomb." Constantine spoke like he would about the weather. The Doctor looked around the room again.

"Probably too late." He commented.

"No. They are isolated cases, but... isolated cases breaking out all over London..." he coughed again, worse than the last time and the Time Lords started to move towards him, Tory faster and closer than the Doctor, "Stay back, stay back." He coughed again, it was getting harder for him to speak, "Listen to me... top floor. Room 802, that's where they took the first victim - the one from the crash site. And you must find Nancy again."

"Nancy?" the Doctor asked, shocked.

"It was her brother. She knows more than she's saying. She won't tell me, but she mi... mi..." he gagged and clutched at his neck, "M... mu... mee..." The Doctor pulled Tory back to his side but watched the human with concern, "Are... you... my... mum-my?" as the pair watched a gas mask started to force its way out of Constantine's mouth, Tory held back tears and turned her head into the Doctors chest so that she didn't have to watch. She heard him go limp in his chair and muffled her sob against the leather jacket. The Doctor wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly.

Voices could be heard in the distance. The Doctor unwrapped Tory from his arms.

"Will you be alright?" she laughed humourlessly.

"I'm a Time Lord; I'm always alright." He kissed her fore-head and walked out of the ward. Tory stared after him, what was that about?

She whipped her eyes and kept her gaze deliberately turned from her latest patient in the middle of the room.

"I'm so sorry." She whispered to him, her voice carrying across the empty room, "So, so sorry."

A new man entered the ward, brown haired, wearing a dark blue trench coat and ruggedly handsome.

"Hello," he introduced himself, "Captain Jack Harkness." He walked right up to her took her hand and kissed it, she stared at him, surprised.

"It'll never work between us," she blurted, "you have an American accent."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded playfully. Tory blinked at him, coming out of her daze.

"Jack? What are you doing here?" he stepped closer to her.

"Do you know me?" he asked charmingly.

"Yes, and I'd very much like not to get to know you better."

"You wound me dear lady!"

"Yes," she replied, "I will." The Doctor snorted in amusement as he re-entered the room and heard the last part of their conversation.

"Ah," Jack smirked, "a challenge." Tory wasn't certain if he was talking about the Doctor or her. Jack walked away from her and towards one of the bodies to scan it with a device on his wrist.

"Hello Rose." Tory greeted the Doctors companion with a smile and got one in return.

"Are you with them? Rose only mentioned Mr. Spock." Jack asked. Tory blinked.

"Mr…Spock? Okay, I can go with that. No, I'm on my own, had a bit of trouble with my transport and got stuck here for the past year, I'll be off once all this is done though."

"So not a Time Agent?" Jack checked.

"Nope." Tory answered with a grin.

"So how do you know me?"

"I meet you in your future."

"Oh? Was I good?"

"Shut up Jack." Tory sighed but enjoying the banter none the less. Jack grinned.

"That's not what she said." Tory face palmed.

Jack frowned as he got the results of his scan, ending the banter and checked another patient.

"This just isn't possible." He protested, "How could this happen?"

"What kind of Chula ship landed here?" the Doctor demanded suddenly from where he was leaning on the wall.

"What?" both Jack and Tory asked, the first surprised by the subject change and the other confused.

"He said it was a warship." Rose explained, "He stole it. Parked it somewhere out there, somewhere a bomb's gonna fall on it - unless WEmake him an offer."

"What kind of warship?" the Doctor asked.

"Does it matter?" Jack demanded, agitated, "It's got nothing to do with this!"

"This started at the bomb site." The Doctor said angrily, "It's got everythingto do with it. What kind of warship?" he was shouting by the end.

"An ambulance!" Jack roared back before calming himself and turning on his wrist device, "Look." A hologram appeared; it was round and cylindrical and would be about two meters long and one wide in real life. "That's what you chased through the Time Vortex; its space junk. I wanted to kid you it was valuable. It's empty. I made sure of it. Nothing but a shell. I threw it at you. Saw your time travel vehicle, love the retro look, by the way, nice panels, threw you the bait..."

"Bait?" Rose repeated, sounding offended.

"I wanted to sell it to you and then destroy it before you found out it was junk." Jack explained.

"You said it was a warship." She protested.

"They have ambulances in wars." He said annoyed, walking closer to Tory, "It was a con. I was conning you, that's what I am, I'm a con man. I thought you were Time Agents but you're not, are you?"

"Just a couple more free-lancers." Rose answered scathingly.

"Ahh... should've known. The way you guys are blending in with the local colour, I mean, Flag Girl was bad enough, but U-Boat Captain?" Rose and the Doctor looked uncomfortable and picked at their clothes.

"Jack," Tory spoke up for the first time, "be nice." He stared at her before turning back to the other two.

"Anyway... Whatever's happening here has got nothingto do with that ship." Jack protested one last time. Rose looked around at the patients.

"What ishappening here, Doctor?" she asked.

"Human DNA's being rewritten" he paused, dramatically, "by an idiot." Tory sighed before explaining a bit better.

"It has to be a virus, and for the moment can only be transmitted through direct skin to skin contact, so no touching!" she warned Rose as she bent closer to one of the bodies. Rose nodded.

"But why?" the Doctor asked, "What's the point?"

"World domination?" Tory suggested, "The whole mawahahaha thing?" the Doctor just stared at her, "What?"

Suddenly the patient Rose was looking at sat up, as did all the others in the ward. Rose jumped backwards.

"Mummy?" they asked.

"What's happening?" Rose demanded and she stared around.

"I don't know." The Doctor answered.

The patients stood up.

"That's never happened before." Tory muttered frowning.

The patients moved towards the four backing them into a corner.

"Don't let them touch you." The Doctor ordered.

"What happens if they touch us?" Rose asked, slowly backing away.

"You're looking at it."

The patients continued to chant as they backed the four up against the wall. No escape.

)0(

Me: considering stopping here…..

Tory: Well?!

Me: well what?

Tory: are we stopping here?

Me: maaaayyyyybbeee. *evil grin*

Tory: I hate you.

Me: *silence*

Timmy: *face plams* you do realise that you just told the person who controls your existence that you hate them?

Tory:…..*realisation dawns*…..ah…..

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary: ah indeed.

Timmy: do you want a big funeral? Or a small one?

Tory: *blinks*

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary: she's typing!

Tory & Timmy: *turn to try and see laptop screen but fail*

Tory: does anyone else suddenly have a really bad feeling?

Timmy: Nope. *grins* all good here!

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary: *thoughtfully* little hungry….

Timmy: I could eat.

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary: salad?

Timmy: sure.

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary & Timmy: *leave room*

Tory: ahhhh well shit. 

)0(

"Mummy!" one of the gasmask people cried out. Tory turned her head to face it while trying to keep the others in her peripheral.

"I am very disappointed in you!" she started speaking in a slow deadly voice, "I'm very, very cross with you and your daddy," she pointed at the Doctor, not realising the possible connotations to her words, "Go to your room!" the gasmask people all tilted their heads to the side, "I mean it! Don't you even try to come back down or I won't be giving you any supper either!" she stomped her foot, "Go to your room!" the gasmask people turned away slowly and shuffled back to their beds.

Tory watched them for a moment and once they were all down, turned back to the Doctor, Jack and Rose, "I am so glad that worked; those would have being horrible last words!" she grinned manically.

)0(

9th Doctor: you stole my lines!

Me: *too distracted to really notice that it's the Doctor she's talking to as she types* It wasn't me!

9th Doctor: you stole my line!I am very, very angry with you. I am very, VERY cross!*smirks*

Timmy: *walks into room, does double take* not good not good!*mutters* how did this nutter get here anyway?

9th Doctor: who you calling a nutter?

Timmy: see anyone else here?

9th Doctor: no.

Timmy: then guess.

Tory: *walks into room while towelling her hair* what's up*she catches sight of the Doctor* eeep! How did he get here?

Timmy: I don't know do i?

Tory: Wasn't asking you! *turns to me* You're the bloody author!

Me: I am TRYING TO WRITE *catches sight of the Doctor* What the hell?! How did he get here?!

Tory: I was asking you that!

Timmy: Girl has a point.

Tory: shut it bucko!

9th Doctor: if you would be good enough to SHUT UP FOR A MINIUTE I will find out what happened.

Me & Tory: yes sir!*salutes and then breaks down into giggles*

9th Doctor: *rolls eyes* it's always the crazy ones.

Me & Tory: *glance at each other* yeah! *falls to floor laughing!"

9th Doctor: *slowly fades away*

Tory: hey! Where'd he go?

Timmy: good riddance! *huffs and leaves room*

Me: *shrugs*

Tory: *goes back to shower*

)0(

Rose sat in one of the empty chairs beside the beds of the gas mask victims at were meant for family while Jack slid into the same chair that Constantine had once used; Tory assumed that the man himself was in his own room on the third floor. The Doctor was leaning on the wall close to Rose's chair and Tory was just re-entering the room from one of the store cupboards pulling a wheeled tray behind her. She stopped beside Jack and nudged him with it to get his attention; he gave her a smile and took one of the three cups of water.

Tory did the same with Rose and the Doctor, sharing the Doctor's water as she leant on the wall beside him.

"Why are they all wearing gas masks?" Rose asked suddenly as she put her empty cup down on the patient's bedside table.

"They're not." Jack answered, "Those masks are flesh and bone."

"How was your con supposed to work?" the Doctor changed the topic.

"Simple enough, really." Jack answered with a shrug, "Find some harmless piece of space-junk... let the nearest Time Agent track it back to Earth. Convince him it's valuable, name a price. When he's put 50% up front, oops! A German bomb falls on it, destroys it forever. He never gets to see what he's paid for. Never knows he's been had. I buy him a drink with his own money, and we discuss dumb luck. The perfect self-cleaning con."

"Yeah. Perfect." The Doctor agreed sarcastically. Jack either missed the sarcasm or ignored it.

"The London Blitz is great for self-cleaners, Pompeii's nice if you want to make a vacation of it though, but you've got to set your alarm for volcano day." He laughed at his own joke but trailed off as the Doctor stared at him blankly and Tory turned to study the celling. "Getting a hint of disapproval."

"Take a look around the room." The Doctor ordered, "This is what your "harmless piece of space-junk" did."

"It was a burnt-out medical transporter, it was empty." Jack insisted. The Doctor gave him a dark look, grabbed Tory's hand and walked towards the door; Tory following behind.

"Rose." The Doctor called.

"We getting out of here?" she asked.

"We're going upstairs." The Doctor answered. Rose stood and started to follow as Jack got up and called after them.

"I even programmed the flight computer so it wouldn't land on anything living, I harmed no-one! I don't know what's happening here, but believe me, I had nothing to do with it."

"I'll tell you what's happening." The Doctor growled, "You forgot to set your alarm clock. It's volcano day." A siren went off in the distance.

"What's that?" Rose asked.

"The all-clear." Tory and Jack answered.

"I wish." The Doctor muttered as he passed through the doors, still holding Tory's hand, Rose and Jack following.

The Doctor broke out into a jog, letting go of Tory's hand as she started to move under her own power.

"I've missed this!" she grinned as they stared climbing the stairs, barely slowing down. The Doctor grinned back at her.

They reached the top floor and Tory looked around curiously; she'd never being up here before. It was a long bare stretch of corridor with a single thick metal door, locked.

She jumped as she heard Jack and Rose's running steps below them. 

"Mr Spock?" Jack called.

"Doctor?" Rose did the same. Tory and the Doctor stuck their heads over the banister in time to see the two humans run past the flight of stairs the two aliens had just climbed.

"Have you got a blaster?" the Doctor yelled down. The two humans skidded to a stop and jogged back to the stairs.

"Sure!" Jack confirmed before he and Rose started to run up the stairs. They arrived on the landing and the Doctor started talking.

"The night your space-junk landed, someone was hurt. This was where they were taken." He explained gesturing at the door.

"What happened?" Rose asked.

"For what I was told," Tory spoke up dragging their attention to her, "it was a child, Nancy's little brother." She frowned as she tried to remember more details. She shook her head, "That's all I've got."

"Get it open." The Doctor ordered. Jack grinned and pulled out a smaller blaster than the one the Face of Boe had given Tory. The Doctor moved back to stand beside Rose while Tory swaggered up to Jack and lent on his arm playfully, she pulled out her own blaster and showed it to him.

"Mine's bigger." She smirked at him before walking back to where the Doctor and Rose were waiting hearing Jack chuckling behind her. She stopped and stood on the Doctor's left while Rose took his right. The Doctor wrapped an arm around her waist prompting her to lean on his shoulder.

"What's wrong with your sonic screwdriver?" Rose asked quietly.

"Nothing." The Doctor answered. Jack fired and cut a perfect square hole around the lock of the door making it squeak open.

"Sonic blaster, 51st century. Weapon Factories of Villengard?" the Doctor checked as he walked up to Jack's side, arm still wrapped around Tory and Rose following.

"You've been to the factories?" Jack asked in surprise. The Doctor took the blaster off Jack and studied it.

"Once."

"Well, they're gone now." Jack explained, "Destroyed. The main reactor went critical; vaporized the lot." The Doctor gave the blaster back.

"Like I said, once." He grinned, "There's a banana grove there, now. I like bananas. Bananas are good." He smiled pleasantly at Jack before walking into the room, taking Tory with him. Rose walked up to jack.

"Nice blast pattern." She complimented him.

"Digital."

"Squareness gun."

"Yeah." Jack agreed.

"I like it." Rose past him and into the room, Jack laughed as he followed her.

Tory reached out and flicked on the light switch as she entered the room; it was a quarantine room with a glass window separating the patients' area from where the doctors would stand. The glass was shattered, chairs and tables broken and thrown around, papers and notes were thrown all over the floor. Through the glass Tory could see the walls were covered in children's drawings, most of a small boy and his mum holding hands in different places a few toys were scattered on the floor and a little bed was in the far corner.

"What d'you think?" the Doctor asked the room at large.

"Something got out of here..." Jack answered.

"Yeah. And?"

"Something powerful. Angry." Jack elaborated.

"Powerful and angry." The Doctor repeated, letting go off Tory as she moved away from him towards the scattered bits of paper on the floor.

Jack walked through the next door into the child's room.

"A child?" he muttered, "I suppose this explains "mummy"."

"How could a child do this?" Rose asked as she joined him. Tory moved another stack of papers and uncovered what she had been looking for; a tape recorder.

"Constantine always recorded his chats with the patients," she explained as she lifted it onto the table for the Doctor to look at, "he always did it just in case a patient didn't make it so the family could hear their voice one last time." The Doctor squeezed her hand in comfort before starting the recording.

)0(

Me: anything in italics is the recording.

)0(

"_Do you know where you are?_" Constantine's voice demanded.

"_Are you my mummy_?" the child asked.

"_Are you aware of what's around you? Can you... see?" _Constantine asked.

"_Are you my mummy?"_

"_What do you want? Do you know..."_ he was interrupted.

"_I want my mummy. Are you my mummy? I want my mummy! Are you my mummy? Are you my mummy? Mummy? Mummy?"_

"Doctor," Rose spoke, "I've heard this voice before."

"Me too." The Doctor answered.

"_Mummy?"_ the child asked again.

"Always, "are you my mummy ?". Like he doesn't know." Rose realised.

"_Mummy?"_

"Why doesn't he know?" Rose asked.

"_Are you there, mummy? Mummy?"_

Tory heard the reels of the tape spinning, the slight clicking noise making her flinch.

"Mummy?" the child asked, "Please, mummy?" Tory had to force herself not to look towards the door, "Mummy?"

The Doctor started pacing.

"Doctor?" Rose asked carefully.

"Can you sense it?" he demanded, not stopping his pacing, Tory looked up at him then, trying to feel what he could feel.

"Sense what?" Jack asked.

"Coming out of the walls, can you feel it?" The Doctor stopped and faced Tory.

"Mummy?" the child asked again.

"Funny little human brains, how do they get around in those things?" he asked her, Tory gave him a weak smile.

"When he's stressed, he likes to insult species." Rose explained to Jack. The Doctor went back to his pacing.

"Rose, I'm thinking." He scolded her.

"Cuts himself shaving," she carried on, "does half an hour in life forms he's cleverer than..." the Doctor interrupted her.

"There are these children living rough around the bomb site. They come out during air-raids looking for food."

"Mummy, please?" Tory flinched but refused to look towards the door.

"Suppose they were there when this thing, whatever it was, landed?" the Doctor continued.

"It was a med-ship." Jack pointed out, "It was harmless."

"Yes, you keep saying. "Harmless". Suppose one of them was affected, altered?"

"Altered how?" Rose asked.

"I'm here!" the child announced. Tory met its gaze.

"IT's afraid," the others looked at her as she spoke, "So very afraid and so very powerful, it hasn't realised it yet but it will soon. It's got the power of a god and do you know what I did?" she gave a short humourless laugh before meeting the Doctors gaze, "I sent it to its room." The sound of the tape reels spinning seemed to get louder, the humans finally noticing.

"Doctor..." Rose paused scared.

"I'm here." The child spoke up again, "Can't you see me?"

"What's that noise?" her voice shook.

"End of the tape." The Doctor explained quietly, "It ran out about 30 seconds ago."

"I'm here, now." The child spoke up, "Can't you see me?"

"I sent it to its room," Tory explained, "This is its room!" the two humans and the Doctor span around and spotted the child beside the tape machine.

"Are you my mummy?" he cocked his head to one side, staring at Rose, "Mummy?" he asked her.

"Doctor?" Rose looked to him for help.

"Okay..." Jack spoke quietly, "on my signal... make for the door. Now!" he violently pulled a banana out of the holster where he expected his sonic blaster to sit, he pointed it threateningly at the child before realising. The Doctor grinned and pulled out Jack's sonic blaster, blasting a hole in the wall.

"Go! Now!" he ordered, "Don't drop the banana!" Jack jumped through the hole followed by Tory, Rose and the Doctor.

"Why not?!" Jack demanded.

"Good source of potassium!" the Doctor and Tory answered.

Tory looked up and down the corridor they were now in trying to plot the nearest exit.

"Give me that!" Jack grabbed the blaster back off the Doctor and fiddled with the settings.

"Are you my mummy?" the child asked as it walked towards the hole. Jack pointed his blaster at the hole and it rebuilt itself, blocking the child off.

"Digital rewind." He explained tossing the banana back at the Doctor, "Nice switch." He complimented.

"It's from the Groves of Villengard." The Doctor answered, "I thought it was appropriate."

"There's really a banana grove in the heart of Villengard and you did that?" Jack asked, slightly in awe and slightly disbelieving.

"Bananas are good." The Doctor answered simply. Rose looked between the two bemused as Tory shook her head.

"Can I have that?" she asked, gesturing for the banana. The Doctor handed it over. "Thanks." She smiled at him before pealing it and taking a bite. The Doctor pouted slightly. The four were brought sharply back to reality as the child hit the wall and managed to crack it.

"Doctor!" Rose shouted.

"Come on!" he grabbed her and Tory's hands and ran for it, Jack on his heels. They got down a short flight of stairs and down a corridor before their path was blocked off by the gas mask patients, they ran back and were blocked from that direction as well. They were stuck, back where they started with the child still breaking through the wall.

"It's keeping us here so it can get at us." The Doctor spoke up as the four moved as far back from the wall as they could go. Jack pulled his blaster and pointed it at each side of gas mask patients as he spoke.

"It's controlling them?"

"It isthem." The Doctor explained, "It's every living thing in this hospital."

"Okay. This can function as a sonic blaster, a sonic cannon, and a triple-enfolded sonic disrupter." He listed, "Doc, what you got?" The Doctor pulled the sonic out of his pocket and stood back-to-back with Jack to cover one side of the hall.

"A sonic, er... oh, never mind."

"What?" Jack demanded.

"It's sonic, okay? Let's leave it at that."

"Disrupter? Cannon? What?"

"It's sonic! Totally sonic! I am sonic-ed up!"

"A sonic what?!"

"SCREWDRIVER!" the Doctor yelled. Jack spun around to face him just as the child broke completely through the wall. Tory grabbed the Doctors hand and Rose's sleeve while Rose grabbed Jack's wrist.

"Hold on!" Tory yelled as she closed her eyes and forced enough of her Meridian particles to cover all four of them. They vanished in a flash of silver light.

They landed in a messy heap on the floor of another ward.

"I'm never doing that again." Tory groaned. Jack and Rose jumped to their feet, Rose moved towards where she could just make out the wall and Jack turned to the Doctor who had moved to sit on the floor with Tory's head in his lap, "I've used too much energy; transporting four people is a lot different from just doing two even without moving time zones," Tory explained, "I just have to recharge."

"Who has a sonic screwdriver?" Jack asked incredulously.

"Ido!" the Doctor answered.

"Light!" Rose muttered, running her hands along the wall.

"Who looks at a screwdriver and thinks "oohoo, this could be a little more sonic"?" Jack demanded.

"What, you've never been bored?" the Doctor returned indignantly.

"There's gotta be a light switch!" Rose was still searching.

"Never had a long night?" the Doctor demanded, helping a slightly recovered Tory to her feet, "Never had a lot of cabinets to put up?" Rose flicked on the lights. All the gas mask patients, who had been lying silently in their beds along both sides of the room, shot upright.

"Mummy?!"

"Door!" Jack called.

"Here we go again." Tory groaned, almost falling over as they darted towards the door. The Doctor wrapped an arm around her waist to hold her steady as Rose did the same on her other side. Jack shoved the door and once he realised it was locked tried to use his blaster which fizzed and died.

"Damn it!" he stepped aside and the Doctor used the sonic in his left hand to open the door, Jack wacked the blaster angrily, "It's the special features, they really drain the battery."

"The battery?!" Rose demanded as the Doctor opened the door and they all rushed through it, "That's so lame." She continued. Rose took all of Tory's weight as the Doctor darted back to the door and used the sonic to lock it. Jack helped Rose place Tory in a wheelchair before darting to the window.

"I was gonna send for another one," Jack defended, "but somebody's gotta blow up the factory." He glared at the Doctor. As he moved away from the window and towards Tory, she smiled at him tiredly and patted his hand to try and calm him down.

"Oh, I know," Rose spoke as she sat in a wooden chair beside Tory, "first day I met him, he blew my job up. That's practically how he communicates."

"Okay," the Doctor spoke up as he turned away from the door, "that door should hold it for a bit."

"The door?!" Jack exclaimed, "The walldidn't stop it!"

"Well, it's gotta findus first!" the Doctor pointed out, "Come on, we're not done yet! Assets, assets!"

"Well, I had a banana," Jack answered, "and at a pinch you could put up some shelves."

"Window..." the Doctor realised, moving towards it.

"Barred, sheer drop outside, seven stories." Jack listed off.

"And no other exits." Rose stated, standing and letting Jack take her chair as he moved to take Tory's pulse, worried, as her eyes drifted open and shut.

"Well, the assets conversation went in a flash, didn't it?" Jack muttered scornfully, Tory gave him a weak look of disapproval.

"So, where'd you pick this one up, then?" The Doctor asked Rose scornfully.

"Doctor..." Rose told him warningly.

"She was hanging from a barrage balloon," Jack explained, "I had an invisible spaceship. I never stood a chance." Rose looked uncomfortable.

"Okay, one," the Doctor started. Jack winked at Tory,

"I'll be back Beautiful." He muttered before tapping some coordinates onto his wrist device and vanishing,

"we want to get out of here." The Doctor continued, "Two, we can'tget out of here. Have I missed anything?" Rose turned to check on Tory and noticed Jack's disappearance.

"Yeah... Jack just disappeared." Rose muttered. The Doctor spun to see the empty chair beside Tory. He walked down from the window and sat in the chair.

"Fantastic." He muttered sarcastically. Tory shifted slightly and took his hand.

"Give me five," she muttered, "I'll 'ave us out of here in no time." Her words slurred together slightly. The Doctor shook his head.

"I'll work something out." He reassured her. Tory nodded. Rose walked up to the pair, placing her hand on the back of the Doctor's chair.

"Okay, so he's vanished into thin air. Why is it always the greatlooking ones who do that?" she asked. The Doctor peered up at her, giving her a look. Tory scoffed, moving with more energy.

"I'm making an effort not to be insulted." He told her.

"I mean... men." She waved a hand dismissively.

"Okay. Thanks. That reallyhelped." He answered sarcastically.

"I think you're a man." Tory informed him.

"Thanks." He responded sarcastically.

"I'd give anything to get you out of that jacket," she continued, ignoring the surprised look the Doctor gave her, "I really, really like that jacket." Rose smothered a snort at the Doctor's disappointed face.

"Rose? Doctor? Beautiful? Can you hear me?" Jack's voice filled the room coming from an old radio on one of the storage shelves. Rose and the Doctor hurried over to it while Tory just turned her head, "I'm back on my ship." Jack continued, "Used the emergency teleport. Sorry I couldn't take you." The Doctor held up the wires from the back of the radio, all disconnected, "It's security-keyed to my molecular structure. I'm working on it, hang in there."

"How are you speaking to us?" the Doctor asked.

"Om-Com." Jack answered, "I can call anything with a speaker grille."

"Now there's a coincidence." The Doctor muttered. Rose gave him a curious look.

"What is?" Jack asked.

"The Child can Om-Com too."

"It can?" Rose asked. The Doctor nodded.

"Anything with a speaker grille. Even the TARDIS phone." He added over his shoulder to Tory.

"That's impossible!" Tory disagreed, "It's not even a real phone!"

"That's what I said."

"You told a child at the other end of an impossible phone call that said call was impossible?" Tory asked.

"Yep." The Doctor answered with a grin, popping the 'p'.

"I bloody love you!" Tory grinned.

"What, you mean the Child can phone us?" Rose asked, dragging the two Time Lords back to the subject.

"And I can hear you." The child answered, its voice coming through the same radio as Jack's, "Coming to find you. Coming to fiiiiind you." It sing-songed.

"Doctor, can you hear that?" Jack asked.

"Loud and clear."

"I'll try to block out the signal. Least I can do."

"Coming to find you, mummy!" The child called.

"Remember this one, Rose?" Jack asked as Glenn Miller's 'Moonlight Serenade' started to play through the radio.

Rose looked slightly flustered as both the Doctor and Tory sent her a questioning glance.

"Our song." She explained in an embarrassed tone. The Doctor nodded and turned away, walking back to the window and sonic-ing the concrete.

Rose moved and sat down beside Tory as the other woman smirked at her.

"What?" Rose muttered.

"Was he any good?" Tory teased, sitting up straighter as more of her energy came back. Rose blushed.

"We had champagne on top of a floating spaceship next to Big Ben, and danced to Glenn Miller."

"Ohhhh." Tory sighed.

"I know." Rose responded, "What you doing?" she asked the Doctor as he shifted from one side of the window to the other, holding the sonic to it.

"Trying to set up a resonation pattern in the concrete; loosen the bars."

"You don't think he's coming back, do ya?" Rose questioned, swinging her legs so that they were over the arm of her chair.

"Wouldn't bet my life." The Doctor responded.

"Why don't you trust him?" Rose asked.

"Why do you?" The Doctor returned.

"Saved my life." Rose answered, "Bloke-wise, that's up there with flossing." The Doctor didn't answer. Rose and Tory studied him. "I trust him 'cos he's like you; except with dating and dancing." The Doctor shot her a look, his eyes drifting to Tory before snapping back. "What?" Rose asked.

"You just assume I'm..."

"What?" Tory asked this time.

"You just assume that I don't... dance." Rose placed her feet on the ground.

"What, are you telling me you do_... _dance?" she questioned, grinning.

"Nine hundred years old, me. I've been around a bit. I think you can assume that at some point I've danced." Rose's grin grew wider and her eyes darted from one Time Lord to the other.

Tory was more energised and shifted in her wheel chair to lean on her knees as she looked the Doctor up and down.

"You?!" Rose teased.

"Problem?" The Doctor asked.

"Doesn't the universe implode or something if you... dance?" she teased again.

"Well, I've got the moves but I wouldn't want to boast." He commented. Rose grinned, stood and moved towards the radio, turning the music up. The Doctor looked up, completely surprised. Rose stopped beside Tory and helped the Time Lady to her feet, pushing her towards the Doctor.

"You've got the moves?" She asked, "Show me your moves."

"Rose," the Doctor sighed, "I'm trying to resonate concrete and Tory should be resting." He pointed out.

"I'm with Rose on this one," Tory disagreed, "and I'm fine now anyway."

"Jack'll be back, he'll get us out." Rose beckoned to him, "So come on, the world doesn't end 'cos the Doctor dances." The Doctor snapped of the sonic and walked towards Tory slowly, an odd expression on his face. Tory held out her hands to him, he looked at them for a moment before his gaze moved to Rose. Tory felt incredibly disappointed for a moment before shoving the emotion down.

"Barrage balloon?" The Doctor questioned.

"What?" Rose asked, completely lost. He pointed to her hands.

"You were hanging from a barrage balloon."

"Best way to see and air-raid." Tory commented.

"That's what I said." Rose told her with a grin before turning back to the Doctor, "About two minutes after you left me. Thousands of feet above London, middle of a German air-raid, Union Jack allover my chest." The Doctor raised his eyebrows.

"I've travelled with a lot of people, but you're setting new records for jeopardy-friendly." He commented.

"Is this you dancing? 'Cos I've got notes." Rose quipped.

"Hanging from a rope a thousand feet above London. Not a cut, not a bruise." The Doctor mused. Tory looked at Rose in question.

"Yeah, I know. Captain Jack fixed me up..."

"Oh, we're calling him Captain Jack now, are we?" the Doctor asked.

"Well, his name's Jack and he's a captain..." Rose pointed out.

"He's not really a captain, Rose." The Doctor pointed out with a self-satisfied smile.

"You know what Rose," Tory started, winking at the blonde, "I think he's experiencing captain envy."

"Yeah," Rose agreed, "he's got it bad." The Doctor half nodded before moving closer to Tory.

"What are you doing?" she asked him and he took her hands.

"Dancing."

"Oh…." She placed her hands on his shoulders and felt his on her hips as they started to sway to the music.

"You'll find your feet at the end of your legs. You may care to move them." Rose instructed. The Doctor and Tory were now chest to chest, she was trying to resist the temptation to put her head on his shoulder.

"If ever he was a captain, he's been defrocked." The Doctor told Rose over Tory's head.

"Yeah?" Rose smiled at the pair, "Shame I missed that."

"Actually, I quit." Jack spoke, "Nobody takes my frock." All three of them looked around in shock, they were standing in what had to be Jack's ship but Tory had no idea how they had gotten there. She moved back from the Doctor and he removed his hands suddenly like he had forgotten they were there. "Most people notice when they've been teleported." Jack commented, "You guys are so sweet." Tory felt a slight blush on her cheeks, "Sorry about the delay. I had to take the nav-com offline to override the teleport security."

"You can spend ten minutes overriding your own protocols?" The Doctor asked, "Maybe you should remember whose ship it is."

"Oh, I do. She was _gorgeous._" Rose smiled at his comment, "Like I told her, be back in five minutes." He ducked underneath the console.

"This is a Chula ship." The Doctor stated as he looked around.

"Yeah," Jack called up, "just like that medical transporter. Only, this one is dangerous." The Doctor snapped his fingers and his hand was instantly surrounded by a golden glow.

"They're what fixed my hands up!" Rose exclaimed, "Jack called 'em, um..."

"Nanobots?" the Doctor suggested, "Nanogenes."

"Nanogenes," she cried, recognising the word, "yeah."

"Sub-atomic robots." The Doctor explained, "There's millions of them in here, see? Burned my hand on the console when we landed - all better now. They activate when the bulk head's sealed. Check you out for damage, fix any physical flaws." Rose beamed. The Doctor banished the nanogenes with a wave of his hand and turned to Jack who had come up from under the console while he was talking. "Take us to the crash site." He ordered, "I need to see your space junk."

"As soon as I get the nav-com back online." Jack sighed the Doctor looked annoyed, "Make yourself comfortable. Carry on with whatever it was you were..." he gestured at Tory, "doing."

"We were talking about dancing!" the Doctor told him innocently.

"It didn't look like talking." Jack commented.

"Didn't feel like dancing." Tory muttered causing the Doctor to glance back at her.

Tory sat down on one of the beds on the side of the ship and the Doctor followed her. Rose walked to the front of the ship and stood behind the captain's chair where Jack was working.

Tory picked up the Doctor's hand and started playing with his fingers distractedly.

"You okay?" he asked gently.

"Hum?" she glanced up at him.

"You alright now?" he asked again, she looked back down at his hand, seeming to just realise what she was doing.

"I'm good," she answered, "You don't mind this do you?" she lifted his hand slightly to indicate what she was talking about.

"No its fine," he reassured her, "It's…..nice." he noticed her blush.

"Okay then."

They were saved from further awkwardness by Jack speaking up.

"Okay, we're good to go." He announced, "Crash site?"

)0(

Tory sighed as she spotted the hospital in the background as the group of four walked towards the main gates of the crash site. The Doctor took her hand, noticing what she was staring at, and gave it a comforting squeeze. They ducked down behind a pile of rubbish set on the unused train tracks as they noticed the guard station.

"There it is." Jack muttered, studying the guard, "Ay, they've got Algy on duty. Must be important."

"We've gotta get past." The Doctor pointed out.

"The words 'distract the guard' head in my general direction." Rose asked, somehow managing to sound amused and exasperated.

"I don't think that'd be such a good idea." Jack answered.

"Don't worry... I can handle it."

"I've got to know Algy quite well," Jack explained, "since I've been in town. Trust me. You're not his type. I'll distract him." He stood and walked towards the guard post, "Don't wait up." Rose stared after him for a moment before look at the Doctor for an explanation.

"Relax, he's a 51st century guy. He's just a bit more flexible when it comes to dancing."

"Howflexible?" Rose questioned.

"Well, by his time, you lot have spread out across half the galaxy." The Doctor hinted.

"Meaning?" the Doctor grinned.

"So many species, so little time..."

"What, that's what we do when we get out there? That's our mission? We seek new life, and... and..." she trailed off.

"Dance." The Doctor finished, sniggering.

Jack reached the guard station.

"Hey, tiger!" he greeted the other man, "How's it hanging?" the older man turned to face Jack a questioning look on his face.

"Mummy?" he asked. Tory and the Doctor shared a dark look.

"Algy, old sport, it's me." Jack tried.

"Mummy?" Jack's smiled vanished.

"It's me, _Jack._"

"Jack?" the man repeated, like a child learning a stranger's name, "Are you my... mummy?" He coughed falling to his knees. Tory gasped and knowing what was coming buried her face in the Doctor's jacket once more.

"Stay back!" the Doctor yelled. Tory looked up to see a crowd of soldiers heading for Jack and the older man.

"You men! Stay away!" Jack ordered. The Doctor helped Tory to her feet while Rose was already running towards where Jack was standing. The four came together again, Rose and Jack looking horror struck.

"The effect's become air-borne." The Doctor realised.

It's accelerating." Tory added.

"What's keeping ussafe?" Rose looked up at them, managing to drag her gaze away from the man on the floor.

"Nothing." The Doctor answered. The air-raid siren cut through the silence that the Doctor's comment had inspired. Jack looked up at the sky.

"Ah, here they come again." He groaned.

"All we need." Rose sighed before frowning in thought, "Didn't you say a bomb was gonna land... Here?" Jack nodded. Tory turned her head slightly as she heard something…was that singing?

"Never mind about that." The Doctor dismissed the bomb, "If the contaminants air-borne now, there's hours left."

"For what?"

"'Til nothing." The Doctor announced, "'Til forever. For the entire human race. And can anyone else hear singing?" The Doctor turned and charged off towards the shed that the singing seemed to be coming from. Tory turned to Jack.

"Order those men into the air-raid shelters," she told him, "at least they'll be safe from the bomb."

"Aye." He responded before moving towards the small group of men that had yet to move. Tory turned to Rose.

"Don't worry about the bomb," she reassured the other woman, "If push comes to shove I can get us all out of here just like before, okay?" Rose nodded before following the Doctor to the shed that he had just disappeared inside of.

Tory stared around, letting her U.N.I.T. training take over.

"What else…" she tried to think, "what have I forgotten?" she slapped herself in the forehead, "Ah! Jordan! Where are you when I need you, eh?" she muttered. She looked around again spotting Jack coming back towards her from one direction while Rose, the Doctor and Nancy did the same from the other.

They turned as one and walked into the centre of the site. Jack and the Doctor moving forward together and throwing the tarpaulin off the Chula medical ship, making the spotlights all around the area switch on.

"You see?" Jack asked, "Just an ambulance."

"That's an ambulance?" Nancy muttered to Rose.

"It's hard to explain," Rose told her, "it's... it's from another world." Jack moved so he could see the control panel on the side of the capsule.

"They've been trying to get in." Jack commented.

"Of coursethey have." The Doctor scoffed as Jack started typing in a code, "They think they've got their hands on Hitler's latest secret weapon. What're you doing?"

"Well, the sooner you see this thing is empty, the sooner you'll see I had nothing to do with it." Jack explained. Suddenly the console exploded with sparks and an alarm went off, they all jumped back, "That didn't happen last time." Jack muttered.

"It hadn't crashed last time." The Doctor explained, "They're the emergency protocols."

"Doctor, what isthat?" Rose asked spotting a red light on the panel flashing, "Doctor!" the gates on the other side of the bomb site started shaking.

"Jack!" Tory yelled, "Get those gates shut!"

"Why?" Jack demanded.

"Just do it!" the Doctor yelled, backing Tory up. Jack ran to obey. The Doctor turned to Nancy, "Nancy, how'd you get in here?"

"I cut the wire."

"Show Rose." He ordered, tossing the sonic to Rose, "Setting two thousand four hundred and twenty eight D."

"What?"

"Reattaches barbed wire. Go!" Jack slammed the gates shut.

"Shift." Tory commanded the Doctor as Nancy lead Rose away, "I'm the one that's a living ship, so shift." The Doctor did as he was told and Tory moved into his place. She put her hand against the panel and frowned as she started to work her way through the encrypting code.

The hatch slid open at the same time Tory stumbled back.

"It's empty." Jack gestured at the pod, "Look at it." Rose and Nancy came back; Rose steadying Tory as she shook her head trying to get the numbers and codes to fade from her vision.

"What do you expect in a Chula medical transporter? Bandages? Cough drops?" he turned away from Jack, "Rose?"

"I dunno." She answered with a shrug as Tory gave her a grateful smile.

"Yes, you do." Tory told her grabbing the blonde's hands.

"Nanogenes!" Rose realised.

"It wasn't empty, Captain." The Doctor spoke, "There was enough nanogenes in there to rebuild a species." Jack paled.

"Oh, God."

"Getting it now, are we? When the ship crashes, the nanogenes escape. Billions upon billions of them, ready to fix all the cuts and bruises in the whole world. But what they find first is a dead child, probably killed earlier that night and wearing a gasmask."

"And they brought him back to life?" Rose asked in amazement, "They can do that?"

"What's life? Life's easy. A quirk of matter. Nature's way of keeping meat fresh. Nothing to a nanogene. One problem, though, these nanogenes, they're not like the ones on your ship. This lot have never seen a human being before. Don't know what a human being's supposed to look like. All they've got to go on is one little body, and there's not a lot left. But they carry right on. They do what they're programmed to do, they patch it up. Can't tell what's gasmask and what's skull, but they do their best. Then off they fly - off they go, work to be done. 'Cos you see nowthey thinkthey know what people should look like and it's time to fix all the rest. And they won't ever stop. They won't ever, ever stop. The entire Human Race is gonna be torn down and rebuilt in the form of one terrified child looking for its mother, and nothingin the world can stop it!" he was shouting at Jack by the end of it and Jack was visibly shaken.

"I didn't know." Jack tried to defend himself.

"We know," Tory told him gently. The Doctor just gave him a cold stare and pulled out his sonic, wrapping an arm around Tory's waist to stop her from moving away.

"It's bringing the gasmask people here, isn't it?" Rose asked suddenly, staring at the flashing red light.

"The ship thinks it's under attack," Tory explained, "wouldn't listen to me when I tried to tell it different, so it's call up the troops, standard protocol."

"But... the gasmask people aren't troops..." Rose protested.

"They are now." The Doctor explained, "This is a battle-field ambulance. The nanogenes don't just fix you up, they get you ready for the front line. Equip you, programme you."

"That's why the Child's so strong." Rose realised, "Why it could do that phoning thing."

"It's a fully equipped Chula warrior, yes." The Doctor agreed, "All that weapons tech in the hands of a hysterical four year old, looking for his mummy. And now there's an army of them." The gas mask people had made it to the surrounding fence but had stopped there.

"Why don't they attack?" Jack asked.

"Good little soldiers." The Doctor explained, "Waiting for their commander."

"The child?"

"Jamie." Nancy corrected Jack sharply.

"What?" he asked. Nancy glared at him.

"Not "the child". Jamie." The Doctor looked over at her.

"So, how long until the bomb falls?" Rose asked desperately.

"Any second." Jack answered, nervously.

"What's the matter, Captain?" the Doctor sneered, "Bit close to the volcano for you?"

"He's just a little boy." Nancy spoke up.

"We know." Tory told her gently.

"He's just a little boy who wants his mummy." Nancy was crying quietly.

"I know." The Doctor reassured her, "There isn't a little boy born who wouldn't tear the world apart to save his mummy. And this little boy can."

"So what're we gonna _do?_" Rose demanded, loudly.

"I don't know." The Doctor answered.

"It's my fault." Nancy cried.

"No." Tory protested.

"It is. It's all my fault."

"How can it be your..." Tory stopped midway through her question as the gas mask people seemed to get louder in their cries.

"Nancy, what age are you?" the Doctor demanded, "Twenty? Twenty-one? Older than you look, yes?" a bomb landed nearby making Rose and Jack flinch. Tory moved to Rose's side and took her hand.

"Doctor, that bomb. We've got _seconds._" Jack pointed out. Another one landed.

"You can teleport us out." Rose suggested as she started at Jack.

"Not you guys." Jack explained, "The nav-com's back online. Gonna take too long to override the protocols." The Doctor didn't turn, his eyes still fixed on Nancy as he spoke.

"So it's volcano day. Do what you've got to do."

"Jack?" Rose asked, looking betrayed.

"You'll do the right thing." Tory whispered before nodding at Jack giving her what little comfort she could. Jack looked at Rose, almost apologetically before teleporting away.

"How old were you five years ago?" the Doctor continued his interrogation, "Fifteen? Sixteen? Old enough to give birth, anyway." Nancy, still sobbing, looked up at him before glancing away, "He's not your brother, is he?" he asked gently. Nancy shook her head, unable to speak, "A teenage single mother in 1941. So you hid. You lied. You even lied to him." The gates swung open as the child, Jamie, and his army arrived.

"Are you my mummy?"

"He's gonna keep asking, Nancy." The Doctor told her, "He's never gonna stop. Tell him." She didn't answer as the gas mask people started to walk forwards, "Nancy... the future of the human race is in your hands. Trust me... and tell him." Nancy sniffed. The child, Jamie, walked forwards, in front of his troops.

"Are you my mummy?" the Doctor gave Nancy a small push to get her moving.

"Are you my mummy? Are you my mummy?"

"Yes." Nancy whispered before her voice got stronger, "Yes. I AMyour mummy."

"Mummy?"

"I'm here."

"Are you my mummy?" they were in front of each other now. Nancy kneeled so they were the same height.

"I'm here." She repeated.

"Are you my mummy?"

"Yes." She answered again.

"He doesn't understand." Tory muttered, slightly tearful, to Rose, "There's not enough of him left."

"I amyour mummy." Nancy spoke through her tears, "I will always be your mummy. I'm so sorry." She pulled him into a hug, no longer caring what could happen to her. A golden glow covered the pair as the nanogenes appeared, "I am so, so sorry."

"What's happening?" Rose asked, looking between the two unmoving Time Lords, "Doctor, it's changing her, we should..."

"Shh!" the Doctor silenced her, "Come on, please. Come on, you cleverlittle nanogenes, figure it out! The mother. She's the mother! There's gotta be enough information, figure it out!"

"What's happening?"

"The nanogenes," Tory explained, "are recognising the parent DNA!" Nancy fell away from Jamie and on to the ground as the nanogenes vanished. The Doctor rushed over followed by Rose and Tory.

"Oh, come on. Give me a day like this. Give me this one." The Doctor prayed. He reached out to the gas mask and pulled it off. Tory laughed in relief as the adorable blonde boy grinned up at them. Nancy stared, delighted, while the Doctor joined Tory in her laughter as he lifted Jamie into the air and swung him around, "Ah-ha-ha! Welcome back! Twenty years 'til pop music, you're gonna loveit." He hugged Jamie before Tory latched onto the boy's other side to hug him as well.

"What happened?" Nancy asked in wonder.

"The nanogenes recognised the superior information, the parent DNA. They didn't change you because you changed them! Haha!" he put Jamie down in front of her before wrapping his arm around Tory's waist, "Mother knows best!"

"Jamie...!" Nancy was crying with happiness now. A bomb landed nearby.

"Doctor, that bomb..." Rose started.

"Taken care of it." The Doctor beamed.

"How?"

"Psychology!" he answered with a gesture at the happy family.

They all looked up as the bomb fell and watched as it was caught in a blue forcefield. A second later Jack appeared sitting on the bomb like a horse.

"Doctor!" Jack called down.

"Good lad!" the Doctor praised him.

"The bomb's already commenced detonation. I've put it in stasis but it won't last long."

"Change of plan, don't need the bomb. Can you get rid of it? Safely as you can?" the Doctor asked.

"Rose?" Jack called to the blonde after nodding at the Doctor.

"Yeah?"

"Goodbye." He vanished and Rose looked slightly disappointed before he reappeared, "By the way, love the tee-shirt." They grinned at each other. Jack vanished again and he and his ship flew off into the sky.

The Doctor walked a few paces away, staring intently at his hands. He waved them once and the nanogenes coated them.

"What're you doing?" Rose asked.

"Software patch. Gonna email the upgrade. You want moves, Rose? I'll give you moves." He threw the nanogenes away from himself and towards the gas mask army who all fall to the ground, "Everybody lives, Rose. Just this once. Everybody lives!" the Doctor yelled, ecstatic.

All the gas mask people climbed to their feet removing the gas masks as they recovered and looking around them in confusion. The Doctor grabbed Tory's hand and darted into the crowd leading her towards…Constantine!

"Doctor Constantine." The Doctor greeted him, as Tory launched herself at him, grabbing the man in a hug, "Who never left his patients. Back on your feet, constant doctor! World doesn't wanna get by without you just yet, and I don't blame it one bit." He gestured around, "These are your patients. All better, now!"

"Yes, yes... so it seems." Constantine answered, as Tory let go of him and back to the Doctor's side, "They also seem to be standing around in a disused railway station. Is there any particular reason for that?"

"Yeah, well, you know, cutbacks. Listen, whatever was wrong with them in the past, you're probably gonna find that they're cured. Just tell them what a great doctor you are. Don't make a big thing of it. Okay?" he turned and rushed away.

"Thank you," Tory spoke to Constantine, "for everything!" before following the Doctor.

"Right, you lot!" the Doctor yelled as he reset some of the setting on the transport, "Lots to do! Beat the Germans, save the world, don't forget the Welfare State!" he spoke only to Rose and Tory now as the humans walked away, "Setting this to self-destruct, soon as everybody's clear. History says there was an explosion here. Who am I to argue with history?"

"Usually the first in line." Rose grinned. Tory laughed as the Doctor matched Rose's expression.

)0(

The three entered the TARDIS, the Doctor still chatting away happily.

"The nanogenes will clean up the mess and switch themselves off, because I just told them to. Nancy and Jamie will go to Doctor Constantine for help, ditto - all in all, all things considered, fantastic!" Rose and Tory shared a grin at his enthusiasm.

"Look at you, beaming away like you're Father Christmas!" she teased.

"Who says I'm not, red-bicycle-when-you-were-twelve?"

"What?!"

"And everybody lives, Rose! Tory! Everybody lives!" he and Tory were almost dancing around the console as they set the coordinates, "I need more days like this."

"Doctor..." Rose hesitated.

"Go on, ask me anything. I'm on fire!"

"What about Jack?" Rose asked, the Doctor's smile faded and he stopped fiddling with the controls, Tory continued, hiding a smile, "Why'd he say goodbye?"

"I got it covered!" Tory announced as she pulled the dematerialisation leaver.

)0(

"Okay, computer, how long can we keep the bomb in stasis?" Jack asked as he sat in the Captain's chair.

**Stasis decaying at ninety percent per cycle. Detonation in three minutes.**

"Can we jettison it?"

**Any attempt to jettison the device will precipitate detonation. One hundred percent probability.**

Jack closed his eyes for a moment.

"We could stick it in an escape pod." Jack suggested.

**There is no escape pod on board.**

"I see the flaw in that." Jack admitted, "I'llget in the escape pod!"

**There is no escape pod on board.**

"Did you check everywhere?" his voice was rising.

**Affirmative.**

"Under the sink?!" he shouted.

**Affirmative.**

Jack nodded, calming himself down as he realised just how pointless arguing was.

"Okay. Out of one hundred... exactly how dead am I?"

**Termination of Captain Jack Harkness in under two minutes; one hundred percent probability.**

Jack sighed.

JACK : Lovely. Thanks. Good to know the numbers.

**You're welcome.**

"Okay then. Think we'd better initiate emergency protocol four-one-seven."

**Affirmative.**

A martini like drink appeared on the top of the console; he reached out, took it with a smile and sipped it.

"Oooh, a little too much vermouth. See if I come here again!" he laughed, "Funny thing... last time I was sentenced to death, I ordered four hyper-vodkas for my breakfast. All a bit of a blur after that. Woke up in bed with both my executioners. Hmm, lovely couple. They stayed in touch!" he stopped pondering what he had just said, "Can't say that about most executioners." He laughed again, "Anyway. Thanks for everything, computer. It's been great."

Behind him the bomb ticked away with 'Moonlight Serenade' playing over it. Jack spun around seeing the open doors of the TARDIS stood up. Tory lent against the side of the door, grinning at him while Rose and the Doctor were twisted around each other rather awkwardly.

"Well, hurry up then!" Tory winked at him before turning away and walking up the ramp to around half way, where she stopped and leant against one of the corral supports. Jack followed staring around in amazement while Tory watched Rose and the Doctor waltzing around the console, with Rose making okaying noises when he got something right.

"Right, and turn..." Rose instructed, the Doctor obeyed but managed to twist her arm around her back, "Okay, okay, try and spin me again, but this time, don't get my arm up my back!" the Doctor looked sheepish, "No extra points for a half-nelson."

"I'm sureI used to know this stuff." The Doctor insisted before turning to Jack, "Close the door, will you. Your ship's about to blow up, there's gonna be a draft." Rose grinned and joined Tory against the pillar. The Doctor flicked a switch on the console and the engines started up, "Welcome to the TARDIS."

"Much bigger on the inside..." Jack spoke still staring around.

"You'd better be." The Doctor warned.

"I think what the Doctor's tryingto say is... you may cut in." Rose grinned and reached to take his hand, to continue the dance.

"Rose!" the Doctor burst out suddenly, "I've just remembered!"

"What?" Rose asked looking around at him.

'In The Mood' blared out of the speakers as the TARDIS change the song. The Doctor moved in time to the song, clicking his fingers.

"I can dance!"

"Actually, Doctor..." Rose hinted casually, "I thought Tory might like this dance." Tory blushed as the Doctors eyes met hers. She walked up the rest of the ramp towards him, holding out her hand. He took it and pulled her towards him, spinning her in the process; it's almost as if he was pretending that he couldn't dance earlier. He spun her perfectly around the console, drawing her towards him and then away. Suddenly he threw her backwards over his arm, Tory laughed in delight. The Doctor pulled her back up and she rested against his chest, giggling.


	9. Jordan's Journeys New Earth

Jordan's Journeys New Earth

)0(

Tory ran her hand through her hair as she gazed around the shops that surrounded her, desperate and hoping for a miracle. It was one day before Christmas Eve and Tory had yet to get Jordan a present. Jordan was going to KILL her!

"Not good, not good, not good!" Tory muttered as she left the shopping district, waving for a taxi and climbing in. She gave directions to the flat and glowered the whole journey as she scrambled to think of something she could get for Jordan.

When the drive stopped Tory climbed out and handed him a fifty.

"Keep the change mate." She told him, turning away.

"Thanks!" the driver called as he drove off.

Tory sighed and let herself into the building.

"Victoria dear!" Mrs Walters, the older woman who owned the building, called as Tory walked passed her door towards the stairs.

"Mrs Walters." Tory smiled at her, "Can I help you?"

"Oh no dear; I just wanted to invite you and Jordan down on Boxing Day for a bite to eat, I don't like spending the day alone."

"Of course," Tory agreed, Mrs Walters had always being kind to the two women and both of them would be more than happy to return that kindness, "Jordan and I'll be down at one?" the older looking woman smiled happily and nodded before going back into her own flat. Tory shook her head, amused and continued up the stairs.

She walked out onto the second floor and unlocked the flat door before walking in.

Jordan, dressed in comfortable jeans and a jumper, glared at her as Tory closed the door.

"What have I done this time?" Tory asked quickly. Jordan raised an eyebrow but remained silent for another beat.

"Well?" she demanded. Tory blinked, trying not to let her confusion on her face, "When are we leaving and when are we going." Tory blinked again.

"Sorry what?" Tory asked, shocked. Jordan rolled her eyes.

"You're taking me on a trip for Christmas."

"Oh…oh….Oh! Right! I remember now! That was my plan all along!"

"Riiight." Jordan muttered sceptically, "Whatever you say."

Tory grinned sheepishly.

"Soooo…..Alien planet?" Tory suggested with a grin.

)0(

Tory and Jordan appeared on a grassy hill staring over a river surrounding an island with futuristic buildings covering it, Jordan's gaze focussed on one with a green crescent moon on the side.

"That's the universal sign for hospital." Tory explained seeing Jordan's gaze on the sign.

"Wow. Where are we?" Jordan asked turning to her best friend as she noticed the flying cars in the distance. Tory grinned at her friends shocked expression.

"It's the year five billion and twenty three, if I'm not mistaken, the galaxy M87 and this planet is called New Earth." Jordan laughed in amazement.

"That's just…" she frowned, "Hang on, New Earth? What happened to Old Earth?" she sniffed, "And why does it smell like apples?"

"Apple grass," Tory shrugged, "It's a New Earth thing."

"I bet it is." Jordan muttered.

"Anyway, in the year five billion the sun expands, that was right after I regenerated, remember?" Jordan made an agreeing noise, "The Earth roasted and the human race was spread out among the stars, once they realised just what they'd lost they started a huge revival movement but then they found this place!" Tory spun on the spot, arms out, gesturing at the whole landscape around them, "Same size as Earth, same air, same orbit, everything. The call went out and the humans moved in." They grinned at each other and sat down.

"So which 'New' city is this?" Jordan asked with a grin as she picked some grass and held it up to sniff.

"New New York." Tory answered as she lay down, placing her hands behind her head and grinning up at her still sitting best friend.

"You're kiddin' me!" Jordan laughed.

"I'm being completely serious!" Tory objected, laughing along. Jordan giggled once more before looking thoughtful.

"So why are we here?"

"I'd thought you'd like to see just how well you humans do," Tory shrugged, "do you like it?" she asked hopefully.

"I love it." Jordan reassured her before jumping to her feet, "so where we off to?" Tory held out her hands, Jordan grabbed them with an eye-roll and pulled her upright.

"Thanks. The hospital's closest so we'll go there and catch a lift into the city."

"Great!" Jordan grinned, "Let's go!" she cried, grabbing Tory's hand and running down the hill, dragging Tory behind her.

)0(

They walked into the hospital reception, Jordan admiring the architecture and Tory glancing around the room looking for something.

"This is amazing." Jordan grinned.

"Where's the little shop?" Tory asked.

"How should I know?" Jordan answered, still looking around, "What do you need a little shop for anyway?"

"Best place to get a lift from or, at least, information." Tory shrugged.

"Why not ask at reception?"

"Where's the fun in that!" Tory protested.

"I will never understand you." Jordan sighed. Tory grinned and winked.

"But you love me anyway!"

Jordan rolled her eyes.

"So what're we gonna do?" Tory shrugged.

"We could explore." Tory answered.

"Okay." Jordan agreed eagerly. Tory looked around.

"Ah-ha!" she cried, pointing off to the left, "The lifts!" she lead Jordan off at a brisk walk.

Tory pressed the button and the door open soundlessly, the two women entered and the door closed behind them.

"Pick a number!" Tory ordered playfully.

"Twenty six." Jordan responded immediately. Tory blinked in surprise, "You told me to pick a number." Jordan shrugged.

"Okay then." Tory rocked on her heels, "Ward Twenty six." The lift started to move upward, "Oh, by the way, watch out for the disinfectant."

"The what?"

**Commence stage one... disinfection. **The computer rang out as the lights on the side of the lift flashed green and a clear shower of liquid fell from the ceiling.

"What the-!" Jordan shrieked as she tried to jump away. Tory laughed. "I'm gonna kill you." Jordan growled as she stopped moving and stood still; letting herself get soaked. Next a white powder covered the two and then a blow-dryer activated. Tory spun on the spot to get a full drying effect. Jordan scowled but copied her actions. When the lift door opened on ward twenty six both Tory and Jordan looked better than when they had walked in.

One of the white clad nuns greeted them removing her face covering, Jordan gasped as the cat face greeted her.

"Greetings, I am Sister Jatt, how may I help you?"

"Ahh yes…um….." Tory trialled off.

"You don't know who you're visiting?" the sister sighed, "Come, the last one went this way." Sister Jatt turned away and led them further into the ward, past a man with wild brown hair wearing a brown pinstripe suit and brown trench coat.

"Someone else is here?" Tory asked.

"Indeed." Tory and Jordan followed the sister in silence until Tory spotted a familiar tank in front of the windows.

"Boe!" she ran forwards, falling to her knees beside the tank. The Face Of Boe's eyes remained closed as she pressed her hand up against the glass, "I'm here, Boe, I'm here."

Jordan watched as her friend placed her hand against the glass of the tank.

"I'm afraid the Face of Boe's asleep." Jordan jumped as another cat nun spoke up, "That's all he tends to do these days." She paused, looking between Jordan and Tory on the floor, now resting her forehead against the glass, "Are you friends, or...?"

"I've never met him," Jordan shrugged, "He saved Tory's life once."

"Oh," the nun paused, "I'm so sorry. I thought you knew. The Face of Boe is dying."

"Of what?" Jordan asked quietly.

"Old age." The nun answered, "The one thing we can't cure. He's thousands of years old. Some people say millions. Although, that's impossible."

"Nothings impossible." Jordan answered with a smile.

"Oh I like you." Jordan turned, blinking in surprise as the brown haired man they had passed on the way in arrived behind her.

"Do I know you?"

"Yes…"he answered slowly.

"That's odd; I've never seen you before." Jordan stared at him.

"Oh er…" he rubbed the back of his neck, "I'm the Doctor." Jordan stared.

"You're not how I remember you."

"Oh, erm, has Tory told you about regeneration?"

"Ah, I get it now!" she snapped her fingers and smiled at him. The Doctor smiled at her before walking passed and placing his hand on Tory's shoulder. Tory jerked around.

"Doctor?"

"It's me."

"Oh Doctor!" Tory let out a small sob and through herself into his arms.

"Shhh,shhh. It's okay, it's okay." He stroked her hair, wrapped his arms around her, "I'll help him if I can."

)0(

**Hope, harmony and health. Hope, harmony and health. **The PA announced as Jordan walked back towards where Tory and the Doctor were sitting next to each other on the floor in front of the windows, his arm around her shoulders.

"Thank you." The Doctor nodded at her while Tory gave her a watery smile.

"You gonna be okay?" she asked gently.

"Yeah," Tory answered, her voice getting stronger, "Yeah." Jordan gave her a gentle smile before holding out her hands to pull her to her feet. Tory brushed down the back of her jeans as the Doctor stood behind her, his arm slid around her waist. She let back against his chest before realising exactly what she was doing, blushing and moving away to stand beside Jordan, facing the Doctor.

Jordan grinned at the light blush across Tory's cheeks.

"Erm…..hi." she muttered awkwardly.

"Hi." He winked at her. Jordan's grin got larger as Tory's blush got more prominent.

"According to the nurse-nun," Jordan spoke up, trying to save Tory from further embarrassment, "The Face of Boe is the last of his kind; the rest died out long ago. There are legends that say that the Face of Boe has watched the universe grow old. One of the most told stories says that just before his death the Face of Boe will tell his greatest secret but, and here's the best bit, he will only speak those words to one like himself, a traveller, a wanderer, a man without a home, the lonely God." The Doctor nodded as Tory sent him a questioning look.

"That'd be you then." She spoke out loud for Jordan's benefit.

"Yep." He answered, popping the 'p'. Tory smiled, "Oh….I'd best call Rose; she'd love to see you again." He wandered off a few feet to one of the 'phone booths'.

"So…" Jordan grinned at her blushing best friend.

"So what?"

"You like him." Jordan teased. Tory didn't say anything. Jordan nudged her with an elbow.

"Whaaaatt?" Tory whined, dragging out the word impossibly. Jordan grinned.

"Am I distracting you from your admiring of that arse in those oh so fitted trousers?" Jordan teased.

"Yes, yes you are," Tory agreed, unashamed, "Now if you would allow me to return to my staring?"

"Of course, don't let me stop you." Jordan laughed waving towards the Doctor who was just hanging up the phone like device.

"Awe," Tory whined, "he's done now." Jordan laughed as the Doctor walked back towards the pair.

"She's on her way." he grinned.

"Brilliant." Jordan matched his grin, "I can't wait to meet her," her grin turned evil, "all the gossip."

Laughing distracted them from whatever they were about to say next, they turned to face one of the other patients.

"Didn't think I was going to make it!" the large man laughed, the Doctor led the way over, when the large man caught sight of the Doctor he called out, "It's that man again!" the Doctor smiled and tugged on his ear, Tory and Jordan standing on either side of him, "He's my good luck charm! Come in! Don't be shy!" The trio stepped forward prompting the woman beside the bed to speak to them.

"Any friendship expressed by the Duke of Manhattan does not constitute a form of legal contract." Tory and the Doctor nodded while Jordan rolled her eyes.

"Winch me up!" the Duke ordered, he gave the group a thumbs up as he was winched up right, "Ah! Look at me! No sign of infection!"

"Champagne, sir, ma'am, ma'am?"

"Please!" Jordan answered, grabbing a glass. Tory shook her head silently.

"No thanks." The Doctor dismissed the waiter, "Uh…you had Petrifold Regression, right?" he checked.

"That being the operative word! Past tense! Completely cured!" the Duke spoke happily, laughing.

"But that's impossible." The Doctor stuttered.

"Petrifold Regression?" Jordan muttered.

"He was turning to stone." Tory explained.

"But that's impossible." Jordan echoed.

"And incurable." Tory spoke out loud.

"Primitive species would accuse us of magic," one of the cat nuns spoke up, "but it's merely the tender application of science."

"How on Earth did you cure him?" the Doctor asked, staring at her.

"How on New Earth, you might say." The cat nun avoided the question.

"What's in the solution then?" Tory asked, nodding towards the multi-coloured drip beside the Duke's bed.

"A simple remedy."

"Then tell us what it is." Jordan challenged, handing her now empty glass of champagne back to the waiter. Tory did a double take; when did she drink that?

"I'm sorry. Patient confidentiality." The nun studied them, "I don't believe we've met. My name is Matron Casp."

"I'm the Doctor and this is Tory and Jordan."

"I think you'll find that we're the Doctors here."

"Matron Casp... you're needed in intensive care." Sister Jatt spoke up as she walked towards the group.

"If you would excuse me." She nodded and they walked away with Sister Jatt, the Doctor stared after them suspiciously.

"What are they up to…." Tory muttered, wandering away from the Duke. Jordan moved forward to continue to talk to the man whilst the Doctor followed her.

"What are you thinking?" the Doctor whispered to her as he placed his head over her shoulder, his lips brushed against her ear, making her shiver.

"I've never like cats," Tory muttered, trying as hard as she could to keep still, "never trusted them." She frowned, "Never trusted nun's either." The Doctor grabbed her by her shoulders and turned her to face him.

"What can you hear?" he asked quietly, "You're even more psychic then I am, if they're doing something to a higher life form you should be able to detect it."

"And what good will that do?" Jordan asked as she joined them, leaning on the wall.

"All higher species are slightly, if not completely psychic," the Doctor ranted as Tory closed her eyes, "Tory here is part TARDIS and a TARDIS is a higher life form, probably the highest, but this means that she's psychic and that means that If anyone or anything is crying out for help Tory will be able to hear it."

"Humans aren't higher life forms, though." Jordan realised.

"What does that have to do with anything?" the Doctor asked. Jordan sighed.

"If its humans she won't sense anything." She pointed out.

"Oh."

"I can't sense anything." Tory spoke up as she opened her eyes having completely missed the Jordan and the Doctors conversation.

"Oh." The Doctor repeated. Tory shrugged.

"Sorry."

"Not your fault, you can't detect any lower life forms after all." Jordan covered up a snort.

Tory gave the Doctor a smile. He winked before pulling out a pair of glasses, putting them on and wandering off towards some of the unused medicine drips.

"Doesn't he look sexy with those on?" Jordan muttered in Tory's ear as she walked passed her to follow the Doctor.

"Yeah, yeah he does." Jordan grinned as Tory realised what she'd done, "Git!"

"But you love me for it!" She called over her shoulder.

)0(

Rose walked out of the lift, pulling her shirt down as she did so; a shirt with most of the buttons undone Tory noticed. Tory raised an eyebrow as Rose completely over looked her.

"There you are!" the Doctor exclaimed happily, grabbing Roses' hand, "Come and look at this patient!" he led her over to a completely red male patient, "Marconi's Disease." He took his glasses off, "Should take years to recover. Two days. I've never seen anything like it... they've invented a cell washing cascade... it's amazing. Their medical science is way advanced. And this one!" he pulled her over to another bed, this one containing a man who was completely white, Jordan was standing next to it covering Tory from any of the nun-nurses views as she tried to use her TARDIS side to get a read on the solution in the medicine bags, "Pallidome Pancrosis." The Doctor continued, "Kills you in ten minutes, and he's fine!" he waved cheerily at the patient. Jordan sighed as she felt Tory walk up beside her.

"Did you find anything?" she asked.

"Nah," Tory replied, "didn't expect to if I'm honest." She shrugged, "Fat lot of good I've being so far, eh?"

"Come on," Jordan pulled her towards the Doctor and Rose by the elbow.

"Did you find anything?" the Doctor asked as he noticed the two. They shook their heads, "I need to find a terminal then. I've got to see how they do this." He walked off grabbing Tory's hand as he passed her.

Jordan grinned at their backs and turned to Rose.

"Hi, I'm Jordan."

"Er, yes," her voice was not what Jordan expected from the descriptions that Tory had given her, she was expecting more Southern less Queens English, "Rose."

"I thought we'd met before, last Christmas."

Rose laughed, slightly nervously, before following after the Doctor and Tory to avoid the question. Jordan scowled at the younger girls back before following.

The Doctor seemed to be mid-rant when the two joined him and Tory at the ward entrance.

"Because if they've got the best medicine in the world... then why's it such a secret?"

"I can't Adam and Eve it." Rose put in as they stopped moving. The Doctor glanced over at her.

"What's... what's with the voice?" he asked, confused. She stepped closer to him, causing Tory to back away in surprise.

"Oh, I don't know... just larking about New Earth... New me..." she trailed off suggestively, looking him up and down. The Doctor looked down at her and finally seemed to notice that most of the buttons on her shirt were undone.

"Well, I can talk. New New Doctor." He grinned.

"Mmm..." Rose muttered, "aren't you just..." suddenly she pulled him down so their faces where level and yanked them together, kissing him. Jordan and Tory both stared, wide eyed as the two finally parted. The Doctor just stared down at Rose shock etched on his face. Rose stared back slightly breathless. "T... terminal's this way." She walked off letting out a breath. The Doctor stared after her.

"Oh hell no." Tory growled stepping up to the Doctor in much the same way Rose had, she grabbed his tie and pulled, the Doctor jerked towards her. She ran her hands into his hair before kissing him fiercely. They parted reluctantly Tory running her hands through his hair one last time before turning away from him, "Right terminal, thata way." She wandered after Rose.

The Doctor turned to Jordan with a dazed look on his face.

"Yep..." Jordan giggled at the high pitch tone of his voice, "still got it..."

"I'm not gonna kiss you." Jordan scoffed.

"Right."

"Tory would kill me."

"What?"

"She's very possessive." Jordan explained with a smirk, "I know a guy's worth it if he survives the Tory Test." Jordan looked the Doctor over critically, "She's taken a shine to you though." Jordan moved to walk passed him, "Don't screw this up." She warned following after Tory and Rose.

)0(

Me: Jordan is such an epic character.

Tory: I know, she's my best friend!

Me: indeed. 

Timmy: You aren't half possessive though, are you? Rose kisses the Doctor so you do to.

Me: Timmy, leave Tory be there is a reason for her behaviour and if anyone can guess it right they are permitted to ask any character including you, Dary, me, Tory and Jordan a question. But only if they get it right. *smirk* Which they won't.

Legend-wait-for-it-dary: Really, is it that hard?

Me: No, it's that easy. *grin* 

)0(

The Doctor stared after Jordan but not really seeing her, just what did he want from Tory? And what was wrong with Rose?

Rose had always supported whatever was between him and Tory, even pushing them together when she had the chance, he didn't understand what had suddenly changed her mind unless the regeneration…but no Rose couldn't, wouldn't be that shallow. So what was it then? He frowned as he considered all possible options and mindlessly followed the three women to the console Rose was waiting impatiently besides.

)0(

Tory stared at the Doctor as he worked on the console, trying to by-pass the security lockouts, what had she just done? Snogged the Doctor because she was jealous? Possessive? She had never been before with previous boyfriends….hang on when did she start to think of the Doctor as her boyfriend?!

"Nope..." The Doctor spoke up as he scanned the data on screen, "nothing odd... surgery... post-op... nano-dentistry... no sign of a shop... they should have a shop."

"I know right?" Tory put in, trying to distract herself from her thoughts, "How else are you supposed to ask stupid questions that you are expected to know the answers to without it looking bad?" Rose glared at her for distracting the Doctor making Tory start in surprise, if nothing else had told her something was up with Rose that most certainly did.

Rose walked around the Doctor to get closer to the screen. As Jordan walked passed Tory and leant against the blank white wall behind her.

"No, it's missing something else. When I was downstairs, those Nurse/Cat/Nuns were talking about Intensive Care. Where is it...?"

"You're right, well done." The Doctor glanced at her. Jordan and Tory shared a frown.

"Why would they hide a whole department?" Rose mussed. The Doctor pulled his sonic from his inner coat pocket, "It's gotta be there somewhere. Search the sub-frame." Rose ordered. Tory stared and Jordan realised that Rose Tyler should have no idea what she was talking about.

"What if the sub-frame's locked?" the Doctor tested.

"Try the installation protocol..." Rose explained like she was talking to an idiot.

"Yeah, course." He turned to the screen and scanned it with the sonic, "Sorry. Hold on." He clicked the sonic and suddenly the entire wall Jordan had been leaning against moved upwards. Jordan fell back with a loud crack as she hit the floor.

Tory spun and ran to her friends side the Doctor and Rose close behind. Rose ignored the injured Jordan and moved into the darkened corridor that had once being hidden behind the wall. The Doctor knelt on one side of the injured Jordan while Tory took the other. They helped Jordan to sit up and the Doctor scanned her with the sonic.

"Concussion." He read off, glancing down the corridor as Rose slowly got further and further away.

"Go," Tory urged him, "I'll find one of the nurses, you go fix Rose." The Doctor stared at her for a moment before standing.

"Be safe." He ordered.

"I promise nothing." Tory joked, helping Jordan stand and wrapping her arm around her neck to help her walk. The Doctor glanced after Rose again before darting forwards and planting a soft kiss on Tory's forehead. He jogged down the corridor after his companion before Tory could really react. She smiled to herself, and headed towards the lift to go to the human only floor that would be better suited to care for her injured friend.

)0(

Tory was sitting in Ward 7's lobby waiting for the resident nun to come and fetch her after Jordan's healing when the alarms started to ring and shutters slammed down over the windows next to her. She jumped to her feet and raced into the Ward, uncaring about what the nun's had told her to do and worried for Jordan.

**Repeat... this building is under quarantine. No one may leave the premises. Repeat no one may leave the premises.**

Jordan was climbing out of her bed when Tory found her.

"I've being looking all over for you!" she exclaimed, helping Jordan stand.

"I've been right here the whole time," Jordan quipped, "It's your fault for wandering off!"

Tory gave a short laugh.

"We have to find the Doctor!"

"Tell me something I don't know!" Jordan yelled over the continued announcement of the PA.

Tory and Jordan made it to the lifts easily, Jordan no longer needing help walking after the medication started to take effect.

"Where do you think he'll be?" Tory asked as they waited for the elevator to arrive.

"Right where all the trouble is, probably somewhere down that hidden corridor." Jordan shrugged, "Are we going looking for him?"

"Obviously." Tory drawled, "Did you expect any different?"

Jordan paused for a moment pretending that she was actually thinking about the question.

"No." she answered finally, cheeky grin on her face, "Never." Tory grinned back just as the elevator lift opened and human looking diseased 'things' walked through.

"Space Zombies!" Jordan screeched, pulling Tory back by her sleeve so that the 'zombies' wouldn't have a chance to touch her.

"What?!" Tory yelled, both she and Jordan continuing to back away from the advancing…..zombies.

"Space zombies!" Jordan repeated before looking Tory straight in the eye as she took her hand ready for the same method of escape they had employed countless times in their missions for U.N.I.T, "I thought it was appropriate." Tory stared for a moment.

"No just no!" she shook her head, glancing back at the zombies. They were almost able to touch them.

Tory closed her eyes and concentrated.

"Doctor." She sighed and the two women vanished in a flash of silver light.

)0(

"Honey I'm home!" Jordan cried as they rematerialized in a dark cellar like room with some sort of frame with a brain in a tank underneath it and a ladder behind it. Tory sighed and pushed off the wave of exhaustion caused by just moving through space rather than time. "No one's here." Jordan noted as she studied the room once more, "And there is a dead brain in that tank." She added as an afterthought.

"We've seen stranger." Tory responded as she pulled out a bag of Skittles and dug in.

"We have." Jordan agreed, holding out her hand right as Tory tipped over the bag to pour some of the sweets into her hand. Jordan munched on the Skittles as she walked over to the lifts.

"They won't be working," Tory called after her as she continued to stand by the doorway Tory had just passed through and study what Jordan had thought where just odd wall panels, "the buildings under quarantine; nothing in, nothing out." Jordan nodded in acknowledgement.

"I see three possible exits." Jordan listed, "Two doors and a ladder."

"Agreed." Jordan walked slowly back to the centre of the room just as Tory straightened from the crouch she had being in while studying the equipment on the floor.

"Why are we here?" Jordan asked suddenly just as the door furthest from the pair slammed open then shut admitting the Doctor and the body of Rose Tyler.

Rose ran across the room to the other door, not noticing Tory and Jordan watching her movements, and pulled it open, only to slam it closed as more of the zombies were on the other side.

"We're trapped!" Rose cried, still speaking in that posh accent, "What're we going to do?"

"Well, for starters, you're going to leave that body." The Doctor demanded angrily.

"Ah-ha!" Tory yelled, making the Doctor, Jordan and Rose jump, "It's a psychograft!"

"What's a psycograft then?" Jordan asked.

"That thing there!" Tory pointed to the odd wall panels, "It lets one living mind take over another!" Tory paused turning to Rose.

"I thought she was nothing like you said!" Jordan muttered, "It explains so much!"

"That psychograft is banned on every civilized planet!" The Doctor continued waving his sonic at it, "You're compressing Rose to death." Tory stopped smiling and glared at the body of someone she considered a very good friend, she hadn't know that fact.

"But I've got nowhere to go." Rose's body whined, "My original skin's dead."

"Not my problem." The Doctor snapped, "You can float as atoms in the air. Now, get out." He waved the screwdriver threateningly, "I won't let you kill her."

"You asked for it." Rose's body agreed with a shrug. A cloud of pick-gold light left through her mouth and into the air, hovering a moment before darting into Tory. Tory's body stumbled back as her mind was pushed away and replaced by someone else, Cassandra."

"Blimey, my head..." Rose muttered, standing straight and giving the Doctor a grateful smile for his supportive arm "Where'd she go...?"

"Oi!" Jordan shouted, grabbing both their attentions as Tory's body straightened and put her hand to her chest.

"Oh, my this is different." She muttered, the same Queens English that Rose had being using coming out of her mouth.

"Cassandra?" Rose questioned, not quite sure what was happening, "Jordan?" she continued realising the dark hair woman was staring at her best friend with murder in her eyes.

"Get out." Jordan snapped, "Get out of her right now!"

"Ah.. ah!" Cassandra- Tory panted, "Two hearts! Oh, baby, I'm beating out a samba!"

"Leave her." The Doctor growled, "Give her back to me." The threat in his voice was obvious. Cassandra-Tory turned to face him.

"Why should i? Any other body I'd bet you'd be willing to hurt to get me out of but not this one, you want to know why?" she paused, "Rose's memories show it clear as day; you lo-" her voice was cut off by the sound of flesh hitting flesh. Cassandra-Tory's head whipped around to the side as Jordan slapped her, "You slapped me!" Cassandra-Tory exclaimed.

"I'll do worse than that." Jordan threatened.

Suddenly both doors to the room slammed open letting in the hordes of slow moving zombie humans.

"Ah!" Cassandra-Tory screamed in fright, "What do we do!"

"Ladder..." Rose realised, "we've gotta get up." Cassandra-Tory moved as if to get their first but her legs locked up forcing her to remain still.

"Human's first." Tory spoke through clenched teeth.

"Tory?" Jordan demanded.

"Yes," Tory hissed, fighting Cassandra for control, "Now move!"

Rose and Jordan started climbing followed by the Doctor as he lagged back to make sure Tory would follow.

Tory relinquished control and Cassandra staggered forwards towards the ladder. They climbed up.

)0(

"If you get out of Tory's body she could get us out of here." Jordan bluffed as they continued to climb the ladder, the Doctor in the lead followed by Rose the Cassandra-Tory and lastly Jordan.

"God, it was tedious inside your head." Cassandra-Tory yelled up to Rose, "Hormone City."

Whatever Rose planned to say in come back was cut off as Jordan cried out in surprise as one of the nurse-nuns had grabbed her by the ankle. Unnoticed by anyone Tory's eyes flashed silver.

"Get off!" Jordan kicked her leg, trying to loosen the hold.

"All our good work! All that healing!" Cassandra-Tory's eyes rolled, "The good name of the Sisterhood... you have destroyed everything!"

"Go and play with a ball of string." Cassandra-Tory dismissed.

"Everywhere... disease! This is the Human World. Sickness!" The cat was stopped as she wailed in pain and her face broke out into boils, she let go of the ladder and fell back down the shaft, screaming the whole way. The zombies below her watched transfixed as she fell before turning their attention to the two Time Lords and the two humans and started climbing up towards them.

"Move!" The Doctor ordered. They made it up to the top of the ladder but the doors where sealed shut.

"Now what do we do?" Cassandra-Tory whined.

"Shut up." Jordan snapped.

"Thanks, really feeling the love right now." Tory muttered, breaking through Cassandra's control just to show that she could do it.

The Doctor pulled the sonic out of his pocket and waved it down at Cassandra-Tory.

"Open it!" Cassandra snapped up at him.

"Not 'til you get out of her."

Cassandra-Tory rolled her eyes.

"Really?" she asked, "You'll kill us all just to get me out of this body?"

"Yes." Silence. "I order you to leave her!" he shouted. Cassandra-Tory rolled her eyes again but when she glanced down and saw how close the zombies were getting.

"Fine." She sighed. Tory sagged against the ladder as the cloud that was Cassandra floated down and tried to enter Jordan.

"Touch her and you die." Tory growled. Jordan blinked in surprise. Cassandra floated back into Tory.

"What else am I supposed to do?" Cassandra-Tory whined, "And no matter how difficult the situation, there is no need to shout."

"Cassandra, get out of her!" Rose ordered.

"She won't let me go anywhere else! She's so unreasonable!"

"That's my girl." Jordan grinned.

"Oh be quiet." Cassandra-Tory snapped. Jordan's grin got wider.

"I don't care," the Doctor spoke, "I will not open this door until you get out of her body."

"Oh, I am so gonna regret this..." Cassandra left Tory again and floated passed Jordan into the first zombie, a woman. "Oh, sweet Lord... I look disgusting." The Doctor opened the lift doors and climbed through, he helped Rose and then Tory. Rose helped Jordan to climb out while the Doctor grinned goofily at Tory, his arms wrapped around her waist.

"Nice to have you back."

"No you don't..." Cassandra muttered leaving the zombie and flashing back into Tory.

"That was your last warning, Cassandra!" the Doctor barked after he sealed the doors, whirling on Tory-Cassandra who had fallen back on the wall a look of complete depression on her face, a look he hoped never to see again.

Rose and Jordan backed away to give the other two some space and check for zombies on the path ahead.

"Inside her head..." Cassandra-Tory murmured quietly, "they're so alone... they keep reaching out, just to hold us... all their lives and they've never been touched." The Doctor held out a hand, Cassandra stared up at him before taking it. He pulled her up to her feet and followed Jordan and Rose towards the doors of Ward 26.

They passed through the door and were ambushed by the woman who served the Duke, brandishing a chair at them and snarling like an animal.

"We're safe!" the Doctor reassured, moving to the front of the group, "We're safe! We're safe. We're clean! We're clean! Look, look..."

"Show me your skin." The woman ordered.

"Look!" The Doctor held up his hands flashing the palm and the back to her, Rose and Jordan copying his actions while Cassandra-Tory stood impassively, "Clean. Look... if we'd been touched, we'd be dead." The woman nodded and placed the chair back down, "So, how's it going up here? What's the status?"

"There's nothing but silence from the other wards." She reported, "I think we're the only ones left. And I've been trying to override the quarantine." She fiddled with a phone like device that hand managed to go unnoticed in her hand, "If I can trip a signal over to New New York, they can send a private executive squad."

"You can't do that." the Doctor protested, "If they forced entry, they'd break quarantine."

"I am not dying in here."

"We can't let a single particle of disease get out..." the Doctor tried to make her see reason, "there is ten million people in that City, they'd all be at risk! Now, turn that off!"

"Not if it gets me out."

"All right, fine. So I have to stop you lot as well. Suits me. Rose, Jordan, Novice Hame. Everyone!" he moved around the Duke, "Excuse me your grace... get me intravenous solutions for every single disease. Move it!" Everyone darted around doing as he ordered while Tory took control back from Cassandra and moved towards the Face of Boe, he was still asleep.

"What I wouldn't give for a nap."

_Why?_ Cassandra asked.

_I want the nap because I'm tired, keeping you out of my head takes a lot out of me._

_Not that! Why do you let me stay?_

_Because I believe that you aren't nearly as shallow as you seem. _

Tory and Cassandra ended their conversation as the Doctor called out to them, she ran over and started attaching solutions to a rope someone else had tied around his body.

"How's that?" he asked her as she attached the last one, "Will that do?"

"I don't know!" Cassandra answered, "Will it do for what?" the Doctor walked passed her towards the lift doors and waved his sonic at them, opening them. The lift wasn't there and the only thing they could see was a single cable hanging down the centre.

"The lifts aren't working." Cassandra pointed out. The Doctor lent over and peered down the shaft.

"Not moving." The Doctor corrected, "Different thing." He jogged back to where Cassandra-Tory was standing getting ready to jump, "Rose stay here, you too Jordan." He waited for the two to nod, "Here we go." He placed the sonic between his lips, ran, jumped and landed on the rope; he attached something to it to hold him in place.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Cassandra yelled at him from beside the elevator doors.

"I'm going down!" he answered fixing whatever he used to attach himself to the line, making it secure, "Come on!" he called to her.

"Not in a million years." Cassandra answered and shook her head as she felt a spike in lust from Tory.

"I need another pair of hands." The Doctor explained, "What do you think? If you're so desperate to stay alive... Why don't you live a little?" he glanced at her.

Cassandra panicked as more zombies emerged from the quarantine zone. She was sealed out of the Ward, Jordan and Rose had their faces pressed against the glass screaming at the woman who had locked her out. Cassandra had no choice. With a shriek she ran forward and jumped landing on the Doctor's back with a quiet, regretful, moan.

"You're completely mad." Cassandra paused, "I can see why she likes you." The Doctor froze for a fraction of a second; did she mean Rose, or did she mean Tory?

"Going down!" he yelled and realised the clamp on the wire. They fell down the shaft faster and faster until the Doctor closed the clamp again and they slowed down until they came to a complete stop just at the top of the elevator.

Cassandra dropped off straightening Tory's clothes.

"Well, that's one way to lose weight." She commented mildly.

_I'm so doing that again when I get the chance. _Tory was grinning.

_The ride or riding the Doctor? _Cassandra questioned. Tory gaped.

"Now, listen..." the Doctor interrupted their internal conversation, "when I say so, take hold of that lever."

"There's still a quarantine down there, we can't..." she tried to protest.

"Hold that lever!" the Doctor shouted. Cassandra stopped complaining and knelt beside the lever, "I'm cooking up a cocktail." The Doctor explained without prompting, "I know a bit about medicine myself." He started to pull packets from wherever they were attached to him, rip the tops of with his teeth and pour them into a large clear container meant for the disinfectant solution, "Now, that lever's going to resist." He warned, "But keep it in position."

"Doubting me Doc?" Tory asked with a grin, Cassandra chuckling in the back of her mind. The Doctor grinned at her.

"Never. Hold onto it with everything you've got."

"What about you?" Cassandra questioned.

"I've got an appointment." He moved over to the trap door into the lift, opened it and lowered the bottom half of his body through it before looking back up and meeting her eyes, he winked, "The Doctor is in." he dropped down into the lift and opened the doors with the sonic, "I'm in here, come on!" he yelled.

"Don't tell them!" Cassandra yelled at him.

"Pull that lever!" he yelled back, "Come and get me, come on! I'm in here, come on!"

**Commence stage one... disinfection.**

"Hurry up, come on!" Cassandra-Tory could hear the solution activate, "Come on, come on. All they wanna do is pass it on. Pass it on!"

"Pass on what? Pass on what?!" Cassandra muttered, asking Tory instead of the Doctor knowing she was more likely to get an answer.

_The cure. _

"Pass it on!" the Doctor encouraged.

Once all the solution finish Cassandra let go of the lever and jumped down into the lift beside a still dripping Doctor.

"Tory says you cured them." She told him as he helped her down, his hands lingering a little longer than normal. The Doctor grinned.

"Of course I did, I'm the Doctor." One of the women walked up to the Doctor and hugged him, "That's right!" he told her gently, "Hey, hey! There we go, sweetheart! Ay? Look at him..." he moved her off to sit beside a male, "Go on, that's it! That's it! It's a new sub-species, Cassandra, Tory!" he took a man by the shoulders and looked at him, "A brand new form of life! New Humans! Look at them, look!" he knelt down so their faces were level, a huge smile on his face, "Grown by cats... kept in the dark, fed by tubes... but completely, completely alive!" he pointed straight at Cassandra-Tory, "You can't deny them, because you helped create them. The human race just keeps on going. Keeps on changing. Life will out! Ha!"

)0(

The Doctor had lost his coat somewhere and was going round in a wet clinging shirt causing Tory to force Cassandra to keep looking at him while the police were collecting the nuns for processing.

They re-entered Ward 26 only to be grabbed into tight frantic hugs by their respective companions, Tory took over from Cassandra as Jordan's arms wrapped around her. No words were spoken by either pair as they let go.

**All staff will present themselves to the officers for immediate arrest. I repeat... immediate arrest. All new life forms will be catalogued and taken into care. All visitors to the hospital will be required to make a statement to the NNYPD.**

"Face of Boe!" the Doctor cried rushing off again, the three females following. They approached Boe to find him awake, alive and well. Tory released control over to Cassandra, too tired to keep it. Tory felt a wave of worry but didn't comment.

"You were supposed to be dying." The Doctor smiled as he spoke.

_There are better things to do today. _Boe answered, _Dying can wait._

"Oh, I hate telepathy." Cassandra muttered, "Just what I need, a head full of big face."

"Shh!" Jordan nudged her.

_I have grown tired with the universe, Doctor, but you have taught me to look at it anew._

"There are legends you know," the /doctor spoke as he kneeled beside the tank, "saying that you're millions of years old."

_There are? _He chuckled, _That would be impossible._

"Wouldn't it just?" the Doctor paused, "I got the impression... there was something you wanted to tell me..."

_A great secret._

"So the legend says." The Doctor agreed.

_It can wait._

"Oh, does it have to?" The Doctor asked, rather put out.

_We shall meet again, Doctor, for the third time... for the last time... and the truth shall be told. Until that day..._Boe teleported away.

"That is enigmatic." The Doctor sounded impressed, "That... that is... that is textbook enigmatic." He nodded to himself then stood to face Cassandra-Tory, "And now for you."

"But... everything's happy. Everything's fine... can't you just leave me?" Cassandra tried.

"You've lived long enough. Leave that body and end it, Cassandra."

_I won't last long if you stay. _Tory added almost silently, _I'm fading now, can't you feel it. _

_I don't want to die…_ Cassandra answered.

"No one does." The Doctor answered, startling Cassandra who didn't know that she'd spoken out loud.

Cassandra opened her mouth again but paused grabbing her head and bending over in pain.

"Help her!" she begged, "Help Victoria!"

)0(

Tory opened her eyes to see a male face staring down at her, pale and covered in…..doodles?

"Goodbye," he spoke and somehow Tory knew it was Cassandra, "my friend."

)0(

"There we go." The Doctor grinned as he opened the doors of the TARDIS to reveal the inside of Tory's room.

"Should I be worried?" Jordan teased as she walked out.

"Very." Rose joked.

"Hey!" the Doctor whined, "Oh hang on," he pulled the sonic out, "give me your phone for a second." Jordan handed it over and watched as he fiddled for a moment before handing it back, "Upgrade," he explained, "Universal roaming; call anywhere anywhen."

"Thank you." Jordan grinned at him.

"You're welcome, I've preprogramed the TARDIS phone in there…."

"Hang on, you have a phone?"

"It is a phone box." Tory pointed out as she stepped around Rose and out of the TARDIS.

"Yeah, but…..you know what? Nevermind." Jordan hugged Rose and gave the Doctor a friendly punch on the arm, "See ya next time Doctor man." She used two fingers to give them a casual salute and wandered out of the room.

Tory patted the side of the TARDIS.

_Look after him old Girl._

_Always, _The TARDIS answered, _sister. _

_Thank you._

_You are most welcome. _A pause, _You do know that we are connected yes?_

_Yep._

_Then I will look forward to our next conversation._

_As will i. _

Rose walked back into the TARDIS and the Doctor look slightly awkward. Tory stepped up to him and kissed him on the cheek.

"Until next time." The Doctor grinned at her, turned and closed the door of the TARDIS behind him. They dematerialised and Tory smiled.

Until the pain started.

)0(

Me: Please don't hate me for the cliff-hanger! Remember if you can guess why Tory is feeling possessive you can ask any of my characters a question!

Tory: and actually get truthful answers!

Me: shut up Tory! 

Tory: *grins and mimes zipping lips shut*.


	10. Christmas Invasion

The Christmas Invasion

)0(

Me: So, so sorry!

Tory: Madd Madds was doing her GCSE's and they we were leaving Egypt because of all the protests and moving to new work and a new school!

Timmy" the only reason we can update now is because we're waiting for paper work that will let us move to New Zealand!

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary: we will be updating once a month once everything is settled we promise.

Me: for now I can just give you this and a promise to update soon! Sorry again…..

)0(

_Rose walked back into the TARDIS and the Doctor looked slightly awkward. Tory stepped up to him and kissed him on the cheek._

"_Until next time." The Doctor grinned at her, turned and closed the door of the TARDIS behind him. They dematerialised and Tory smiled._

_Until the pain started. _

)0(

Jordan sighed sipping on her tea slowly as she looked down at Tory's limp body, spread out on the bed. Jordan didn't know what happened. One moment Tory was saying a rather awkward goodbye to the Doctor, who Jordan was fairly certain Tory was in love with (even if she refused to admit it to herself), and the next the TARDIS and Doctor were gone and Tory was on the floor, clutching her head, screaming. To be honest at first Jordan had thought that Cassandra had done more damage to Tory then either the Doctor or the TARDIS scanners had noticed but when she tried to contact him for help there was no answer. Jordan had no idea what to do.

Jordan had checked Tory's hearts and they were both working but other than that Jordan had no idea what could possibly be wrong, she had considered calling U.N.I.T, and they had most certainly called her once the trouble with the satellite started but Jordan refused to leave Tory and U.N.I.T had no way to help her.

Jordan had watched the T.V. as they reported the news of the aliens transmitted from Guinevere One, a British satellite on the way to Mars, but didn't really take it in.

"The face of an alien," the BBC reported, "life form was transmitted live tonight on BBC1. On the 25th of December, the human race has been shown absolute proof that alien life exists. These remarkable images have been relayed right across the world."

"They'll be meeting at the Tower," Jordan mused as she walked away from the T.V. and back into Tory's room, tea in hand; it had to be her fifth cup of the might but she didn't care. She'd used her clearance to get access to the U.N.I.T servers and across the room flashing on her laptop screen was a red blip tracking the progress of the alien ship towards planet Earth.

Jordan blinked herself out of her doze as the light from the rising sun fell across her face, she placed her empty tea cup on the bedside table.

"Christmas day." Jordan whispered as she stood and walked towards the window to stare down at the street. She blinked in surprise as she spotted Mrs Walters walking out the front door of the building and around to the fire escape on the side.

"Mrs Walters?" Jordan stuck her head out of the window and shouted down at the older woman. She got no reaction other than a flash of an eerie blue light covering the woman's head. Jordan's eyes widened. She pulled her head back in the window and put her face right by Tory's ear. "I need you." She whispered.

Tory sat bolt upright.

"Where's the fire?" Jordan couldn't help rolling her eyes at that comment.

"There's this blue light over Mrs Walters head and she's ignoring me!" Tory blinked.

"You woke me up out of a healing sleep that's helping me cope with the backlash of the Doctor's bad regeneration and the TARDIS's healing after being ripped open to tell me that the land-lady is ignoring you?" Tory shrieked.

Jordan moved to the other side of the room and grabbed her laptop, still showing the progress of the alien ship.

"And there's this," Jordan argued defensively as she handed the laptop over, "alien ship heading towards the Earth with unknown intent."

"Ohhh must be a Tuesday." Tory muttered, earning another eye roll, "Then again," Tory was frowning in thought, "show me this light."

)0(

They were on the roof. Mrs Walters was standing on the edge. NOT good. And then it got worse.

Tory convulsed, falling to the ground.

"Tory!" Jordan managed to grab her before she hit the gravel of the roof.

"The Doctor, he's regenerating!" Tory gasped out.

"So?" Jordan snapped concern evident even in her stressed tone. Tory tried to laugh but it changed into a groan of pain half way through.

"Something's gone wrong with it, its lasting longer than it should," Tory explained, "I can feel it, through the link I opened with the TARDIS."

"What link? You never said anything about a link!"

"It was accidental!" Tory defended herself, trying to ignore the pain long enough to say what she had to say, "The TARDIS and I are basically the same species, she wanted to talk to me!"

"Hang on, the TARDIS is alive?" Tory sighed, "Right, not the time." Jordan muttered.

"Exactly." Tory's arms flung out of their own violation as the pain got the better of her.

"Tory!" Jordan held her tighter, trying to stop her from hurting herself.

"I have to go back to sleep," Tory gasped, "help me." She begged.

Jordan never wanted to remember this moment; she had never seen Tory beg for anything, never.

"How? Tell me!"

"I need…."

"What, what is it?"

"I…"

"Aspirin?" Jordan suggested.

"Time Lords are allergic."

"Soup!" a pause, "aspirin? Really?"

"Nothing about us is normal." Tory answered with a shrug before her head rolled to the side, boneless.

)0(

Jordan was sitting at Tory's bedside again a man had helped her carry Tory back to the house. Jordan had only bothered making sure he had left the house before returning to Tory's side. She was worse now; nothing Jordan tried had any effect. Jordan sat beside her best friend, ignoring all calls from U.N.I.T, hoping that they'd assume that she was on a roof somewhere or not even bother trying after a while.

Jordan turned and stared through the open doorway at the T.V. watching as Harriet Jones, PM, appealed to the people of Britain.

"Ladies and gentlemen," she spoke, "if I may take a moment during this terrible time. It's hardly the Queen's speech, I'm afraid that's been cancelled." She turned her head to the side, speaking to someone off camera, "Did we ask about the royal family?" a pause as the person replied, "Oh. They're on the roof." Jordan had to snort at that even if it wasn't really funny, she walked out of Tory's room and into the kitchen, "But, Ladies and gentlemen, this crisis is unique, and I'm afraid to say, it might get much worse. I would ask you all to remain calm. But I have one request: Doctor. If you're out there... we need you. I don't know what to do." Jordan stopped her hands on the counter, either side of her fresh brewed cup of tea, "But if you can hear me, Doctor...If anyone knows the Doctor, if anyone can find him... the situation has never been more desperate. Help us. Please, Doctor. Help us."

"Come on Doctor." Jordan begged the empty air as she walked back over to the bed, her cup of tea in hand, "Please."

Jordan held her cup up to her mouth, about to take a drink when the glass in the window blew out. Jordan screamed in surprise and dropped her tea on to Tory's pillow.

"What the hell!?" she yelled running into the living room where she had left her phone to try and get in contact with U.N.I.T. but stopped and stared when she noticed the giant hunk of rock that was floating over London.

"Oh," a voice spoke behind her, "Now it's a party." Jordan spun.

"Tory?"

"The one, the only," smirk, "the best."

"If you're the only one that's not saying much." Jordan pointed out.

"I hate you." But the grin on her face took all the insult out of what she said.

"I love you to." Jordan paused, "Are you feeling better now?"

"Yeah," Tory grimaced, "I just needed," a shudder, "tea."

Jordan stared.

"Tea?" she repeated.

Tory shuddered again.

"Tea." Tory confirmed.

"But you HATE tea." Jordan was trying very, very hard not to laugh.

"Exactly why I need something to get that horrible taste out of my mouth!"

"What kind of English person are you?" Jordan laughed, somewhere between disbelief, relief and humour.

Tory glared at her.

"The homicidal kind." She muttered; it only made Jordan laugh harder.

"Alright, alright," Jordan gasped once she got her giggles under control, "what are we going to do about the hunk of space rock?"

"The ship?"

"Yeah."

"Blow it up?"

"Too messy." Jordan argued.

"Point." Tory agreed, "We should probably try and find the Doctor, get him better,"

"Using tea." Jordan interrupted with a grin.

"Yes, using tea," Tory glared at her, "and let him deal with it in a hopefully non-violent manner."

"Good plan." Jordan commented, "But how do we find him?"

"Oh didn't I tell you?" Tory grinned, "I know exactly where he is!"

)0(

"Why couldn't we take the car again?" Jordan panted as she and Tory paused in their running long enough to take a breath.

"Honestly," Jordan glared; Tory was breathing perfectly normally it wasn't like she had even just run all that distance! "Do you really think that the police will let anyone drive around right now? They'll be scared that they'll get the same urge to go up to the roof!"

"But why would it be delayed?"

"It wouldn't but why risk it?"

Jordan agreed with the logic in that point and would even enforce the idea if it wasn't her that had to run across what felt like the whole of London.

Tory smirked like she knew exactly what the other woman was thinking causing Jordan to scowl and start moving again. Tory laughed.

"Let's get moving then, we've alien invasion to stop after all."

"Indeed." Tory smirked, "It is a Tuesday after all."

)0(

The made it onto the Powell estate in time to spot the TARDIS vanish in a flash of blue light and a woman who looked enough like Rose to pass as her mother drop the mass of bags she was holding on the ground and yell.

"Rose!"

Jordan ran forward while Tory just stared at the ship overhead for a moment before running to the place where the TARDIS had once being standing and dragging her fingers along the ground before licking them.

"Do you know Rose?" Jordan demanded of the older blonde before turning to Tory, "and eww."

Tory straightened.

"Transport residue, they're safe, probably up there." Tory pointed at the belly of the ship above.

"My Rose is safe?"

"You're her mum?" Tory asked walking over, the blonde nodded, "Oh well done," Tory complimented her, "You've raised a wonderful daughter."

"What's your name?" Jordan asked.

"Jackie."

"Oh!" Tory shared a grin with Jordan, "You're the one that slapped the Doctor aren't you?"

"Yeah."

"I bloody love you." Jordan grinned at her. Jackie laughed.

"How d'you know 'im then?" Jackie asked.

"I'm Tory and this is Jordan."

"Ah Rose has mentioned you."

"Really?" Tory grinned, "I love it when people talk about be." Jordan rolled her eyes.

"Was Rose on the TARDIS?" Jordan brought the conversation back to seriousness.

"Yeah," Jackie looked tearful, "with Mickey and the Doctor; he's not doin' to well."

"I know." Tory grimaced, "Trust me."

"He just needs some tea." Jordan reassured Jackie.

"I said so!" Jackie cried happily, "But how are you goin' to get to 'im?"

"Like this." Tory answered with a grin, grabbing hold of Jordan's arm and using her Meridian Particles to transport the pair of them up into the ship.

They appeared behind the TARDIS, hidden in the shadows, and peered around her, one on each side.

Rose was standing in front of Harriet Jones and her assistant while the aliens, Sycorax, Tory knew stood around them, guarding them.

Rose had being talking but trailed off as the Sycorax leader stalked towards her. There was a few seconds of silence during which both of the hidden females got ready to jump to Roses defence before the every Sycorax in the room, including those in the amphitheatre like stands burst into laughter.

"That's one way to make an impression." Tory muttered, earning a kick in the back of her leg from Jordan.

The laughter died down and the Sycorax leader spoke, Tory understood exactly what he was saying and was trying to figure out a way to tell Jordan when Harriet's assistant read a translation from the device in his hands.

"You are very, very funny." He read, glancing up at Rose in worry, a matching expression on Harriet's and Mickeys faces, "And now you're going to die." He finished reading.

"Leave her alone!" Harriet yelled, lurching forwards.

"Don't touch her!"

"Leave her alone." Both Mickey and Harriet were restrained by the Sycorax and dragged back, leaving Rose to face her fate on her own.

"Did you think you were clever with your stolen words?" The assistant translated.

Tory and Jordan shared a look; the second one of them moved towards Rose, they WOULD die. Tory pulled out her sonic blaster from one of her bigger on the inside pockets and tossed it to Jordan, who caught it in a practiced movement and got ready to charge.

"We are the Sycorax. We astride the darkness." The leader hissed at Rose who whimpered. Tory growled; a proper animalistic growl that drew a surprised look from Jordan. "Next to us you are but a wailing child. If you are the best your planet can offer as a champion..."

"Then your world will be gutted..." the Leader switched to English for everyone to hear. Tory grinned and gave Jordan a confident smirk. The TARDIS cheered in the back of Tory's mind.

"... then your world will be gutted..." the assistant continued to translate not realising that the leader was now speaking English.

"... and your people enslaved." The Leader finished.

"... and your people enslaved". The assistant read before looking up, "Hold on, that's English."

"He's talking English." Harriet spoke slowly like she doubted what she was hearing.

"You're talking English." Rose informed the Leader, shocked.

"I would never dirty my tongue with your primitive bile!" the Leader protested venomously.

"That's English." Rose pointed at the Leader before turning to the other three humans that she knew about, "Can you hear English?" all the humans nodded, including Jordan making Tory smother a laugh.

"Yeah, that's English." Mickey agreed.

"Definitely English." The assistant chimed in.

"I speak only Sycoraxic!" the Leader spat.

"If I can hear English... then it's being translated. Which means it's working. Which means..." Rose turned slowly to face the TARDIS doors forcing Tory and Jordan to duck out of sight. The pair heard the doors swing open and Tory grabbed Jordan before transporting them into another shadow so they could see what was happening.

"Did you miss me?" The newly regenerated Doctor asked, with his gravity deifying hair and skinny build. Rose smiled in delight. The Sycorax Leader roared in furry and lashed a whip towards the Doctor, it didn't make it even half the distance before it was engulfed in a cloud of silver Meridian Particles.

Jordan turned and stared at Tory; her eyes, instead of being a colour that could only be classed as TARDIS blue, were completely pure molten silver in colour. The whip disintegrated. The Sycorax Leader took a few steps back in fright before collecting himself.

Both the Doctor and Rose, recognising the light for what it was searched the room for a hit of either Jordan or Tory but found none.

"You could have someone's eye out with that!" the Doctor scolded, like he had been the one to destroy the whip.

Fear forgotten with the Doctor's words the Sycorax Leader roared again and moved as if to attack the Doctor with his staff. Tory's hand flew up into the air, a cloud of Meridian Particles formed in front of the Doctor, took the exact shape of her fist and blocked the staff easily before yanking it out of the Sycorax Leaders grasp and squeezing hard enough to snap the staff down the centre.

"You just can't get the staff." The Doctor took the credit again, "Now, you, just wait. I'm busy." As the Leader stared at the Doctor incredulously the Doctor walked away to where Rose, Mickey, Harriet and her assistant where standing, "Mickey! Hello!" he greeted him happily before turning to Harriet, "And Harriet Jones MP for Flydale North! Blimey, it's like 'This Is Your Life'!" he turned to Rose, a massive smile on his face, "Tea! That's all I needed! A good cup of tea! Superheated infusion of free radicals and tannin. Just the thing for healing the synapses..." he lowered his voice and spoke seriously, "Now... first thing's first... be honest. How do I look?"

A moment of stunned silence and Jordan holding in her laughter.

"Um..." Rose seemed to be searching for the right answer, "different."

"Good different or bad different?" the Doctor asked. Jordan glanced over at Tory hoping to make some sort of comment about the Doctor wanting to look good for her but Tory was on high alert, her eyes seemed like they were burning, Jordan had only ever seen Tory like this once before; when Jordan was nearly killed by an alien whist on mission, it had taken three days for the silver to fade once Tory was told that Jordan would be fine and a week for Tory to let Jordan go out on her own. They never found any piece of that alien bigger than Jordan's little finger nail. It was a chilling experience for everyone involved.

"Just... different." Rose answered.

"Am I... ginger?" the Doctor asked in a deadly serious tone. Rose raised her eyes to his hair.

"No, you're just sort of brown." She answered with a shrug. The Doctor turned away from her, pouting.

"Aww, I wanted to be ginger. I've never been ginger." Suddenly he turned back to her, pointing at Rose violently, "And you, Rose Tyler, fat lot of good you were, you gave up on me, oh, that's rude. That's the sort of man I am now, am I? Rude." He paused in thought, "Rude and not ginger."

"I'm sorry," Harriet interrupted, "who is this?"

"I'm the Doctor."

"He's the Doctor." Rose reassured her.

"But what happened to my Doctor?" Harriet asked, "Or is it a title that's just passed on?"

"I'm him." The Doctor spoke as he walked towards her, "I'm literally him. Same man, new face, well, new everything."

"But you can't be." She protested with a frown.

"Harriet Jones. We were trapped in Downing Street, and the one thing that scared you wasn't the aliens... wasn't the war... it was the thought of your mother being on her own." The Doctor gave her a soft smile.

"Oh, my God."

"Did you win the election?" he asked, bending out to her height.

"Landslide majority." Harriet answered with a smile, sounding rather pleased.

"If I might interrupt!" the Sycorax Leader yelled, finally losing his patience. They all spun around to face him, seeming to have forgotten where they were.

"Yes!" the Doctor spoke, "Sorry! Hello, big fella!"

"Who exactly are you?" the Leader demanded. The Doctor answered with a fixed grin on his face.

"Well. That's the question."

"I demand to know who you are!" the Leader roared.

"I DON'T KNOW!" the Doctor roared back, stunning all into silence, he relaxed back into his normal tones, "See, there's the thing. I'm the Doctor, but beyond that, I... I just don't know. I literally do not know who I am. It's all untested." He started moving around, addressing the room as a whole, "Am I funny? Am I sarcastic?" he stared unerringly at Tory, "Sexy?" he winked cheekily and Jordan could spot the blush on Tory's cheeks even with her still silver eyes, "Right old misery?" the Doctor continued, "Life and soul? Right-handed? Left-handed? A gambler? A fighter? A coward? A traitor? A liar? A nervous wreck? I mean, judging by the evidence, I've certainly got a gob." His path had taken him to a point where he spotted a huge red button on a raised platform, "And how am I gonna react when I see this?" he pointed up at the button with an insane smile, "A great big threatening button." He darted up the stairs to the button, laughing, the humans and Sycorax Leader running after him but pausing at the bottom of the steps, "A Great Big Threatening Button Which Must Not Be Pressed Under Any Circumstances. Am I right? Let me guess, it's some sort of control matrix? Hmm? Hold on, what's feeding it?" he bent down and opened a hatch under the button reveling what it was running on, "And what've we got here? Blood?" he dipped a finger in the liquid and then licked it, "Yeah, definitely. Blood. Human blood. A Positive. With just a dash of iron." He stuck his tongue out and moved it around trying to get rid of the taste and wiped his finger on his dressing gown, "Ahh. But that means... blood control..." he looked and sounded delighted, "Blood control! Oh! I haven't seen blood control for years! You're controlling all the A Positives!" The Sycorax Leader looked nervous, "Which leaves us with a great big stinking problem. 'Cos... I really don't know who I am. I don't know when to stop. So if I see a Great Big Threatening Button Which Should Never Ever Be Pressed... then I just wanna do this." He slammed his hand down on the button.

"No!" Rose and Harriet screamed up at him.

"You killed them!" the assistant spoke in a horrified tone.

"What do you think, big fella?" the Doctor asked the Sycorax Leader, ignoring the distraught humans, "Are they dead?"

"We allow them to live."

"Allow?" the Doctor snorted, "You've no choice! I mean, that's all blood control is. Cheap bit of voodoo. Scares the pants off you, but that's as far as it goes. It's like hypnosis... you can hypnotise someone to walk like a chicken or sing like Elvis, you can't hypnotise them to death. Survival instinct's too strong." He explained.

"Blood control was just one form of conquest." The Sycorax Leader pointed out, "I can summon the armada and take this world by force."

"Well, yeah, you could, yeah, you could do that, of course you could." The Doctor agreed, "But why? Look at these people." He gestured at the humans, "These human beings. Consider their potential. From the day they arrive on the planet and blinking step into the sun. There is more to see than can ever be seen. More to do than... no, hold on..." he paused, thinking, "Sorry, that's "The Lion King". But the point still stands. Leave them alone!"

"Or what?"

"Or..." he ran back down the platform into the empty space in front of the TARDIS, grabbing the sword of one of the Sycorax guards as he passed them, "I challenge you." The aliens all laughed, "Oh, that struck a chord. Am I right that the sanctified rules of combat still apply?" the Doctor asked, twirling his sword.

The Sycorax Leader followed him down slowly, drawing his sword.

"You stand as this world's champion."

The Doctor shrugged off his dressing gown.

"Thank-you. I've no idea who I am, but you just summed me up." He tossed the gown at Rose, who managed to catch it, "So... you accept my challenge? Or are you just a cranak pel casacree salvak?" the TARDIS refused to translate that last part but Tory chuckled. The Sycorax Leader hissed, before kneeling in unison with the Doctor.

"For the planet?" he asked.

"For the planet." The Doctor agreed. The stood up and face each other, swords at the ready.

Suddenly the two males ran at each other as the Doctor was surrounded by a cloud of Meridian Particles, speeding his movements and giving him a small amount of protection from the Sycorax blades. After a few moments the Doctor was tossed to the side and the Leader laughed as he climbed back up to his feet. The Doctor straightened and charged again.

"Look out!" Rose screamed suddenly as the Doctor barely managed to dodge under a blow aimed for his head.

"Oh, yeah, that helped." The Doctor called back to her sarcastically, "Wouldn't have thought of that otherwise, thanks." The males started to fight again, Rose visibly terrified.

The Doctor led the fight up a set of stairs.

"Bit of fresh air?" he suggested, hitting a button and darting out of the door it opened and onto a platform on the outside of the spaceship. The fight continued, the humans running to follow, including Jordan while Tory started to float from the power she was using and just directed herself to move outside.

The Sycorax Leader managed to hit the Doctor in the nose with a blow causing the Doctor to stumble back and Rose to try and move to him.

"Stay back!" he shouted raising a hand, "Invalidate the challenge and he wins the planet." He cast a concerned look at Tory who was steadily starting to glow brighter and who had also developed a nose bleed and bruise where the Sycorax had struck him while the Doctor felt fine. The Doctor wiped his nose and charged again, determined to end the fight as soon as possible. They managed to interlock the swords but the Leader gained the upper hand as he forced the Doctor away, he fell over and ended up on his back, defenceless.

The Leader roared and cut off the Doctors hand, it fell over the side of the ship taking the sword with it. Tory screamed with the blow. The Doctor looked up at her frantically. Jordan tried to comfort her but Tory was shaking so hard that she couldn't touch her.

"You cut my hand off." The Doctor drew the attention back to himself before the Sycorax could get suspicious.

"Yah!" the Leader celebrated, "Sycorax!" the Doctor climbed to his feet slowly.

"And now I know what sort of man I am." He spoke, "I'm lucky. 'Cos quite by chance... I'm still within the first fifteen hours of my regeneration cycle. Which means I've got just enough residual cellular energy... to do this." He held up his stump of an arm and the hand grew back it a flash of golden regeneration energy. The gold light mixed with the silver of Tory's protection, and travelled back to her, healing the damage she had taken on the Doctor's behalf.

"Witchcraft." The Sycorax hissed.

"Time Lord." The Doctor responded.

Rose grabbed one of the swords of another Sycorax.

"Doctor!" he turned to her and she tossed it to him, he caught it by the handle and twirled it.

"Oh, so I'm still the Doctor, then?" he asked.

"No arguments from me!" Rose answered with a smile.

_Always._ Tory answered inside his head. The Doctor grinned at both of them before turning back to the Sycorax Leader.

"Wanna know the best bit? This new hand," he spoke in a Texan accent, "It's a fightin' hand!" He ran at the Sycorax Leader and restarted the fight. The Meridian Particles around him flickered and died as Tory floated gently back down to the ground before slumping over into the supportive arms of Jordan and Rose, exhausted.

The Doctor picked up the pace, wanting nothing more than to get back to Tory. He spun and managed to hit the Sycorax in the stomach with the pommel of the sword, driving the air out of him, he did this twice more making the Sycorax fall to the ground. The Doctor stood over him, sword at his throat.

"I win." The Doctor announced.

"Then kill me."

"I'll spare your life if you'll take this champion's command : leave this planet, and never return. What do you say?"

"Yes."

"Swear on the blood of your species." The Doctor demanded, jabbing the sword closer.

"I swear."

"There we are, then!" the Doctor grinned, returning to his lighter, carefree tone, "Thanks for that! Cheers, big fella!" he jabbed the sword into the ground and stepped back.

"Bravo!" Harriet clapped. Tory stood up straight under her own power and Rose took the opportunity to run forwards.

"That says it all. Bravo!" she grinned.

"Yeah!" the Doctor agreed, "Not bad for a man in his jim-jams!" Rose draped the dressing gown back over the Doctor's shoulders and he put his arms in the right places. He stepped up to Tory and Jordan carefully, almost like he was afraid of how he'd be received. Jordan grinned at him.

"Best sword fight I've ever seen." She complimented him before stepping away to give Tory and him a chance to speak.

Tory smiled at him.

"Hello."

"Hi." He grinned and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. Her smile got wider.

"At the end of these things does the dashing hero usually get a kiss from his damsel?"

The Doctor felt some emotion rise in his chest when she called herself his.

"Yeah." He coughed to try and bring his voice back to a normal register.

"Alright then." Tory lent up on her toes and kissed his cheek pausing to whisper in his ear, "Dinner and a date required if you want more." She fell back to her normal height, "Pyjama's?" she asked suddenly.

"What? Oh yeah, very Arthur Dent." He winked at her before turning to include the rest of the humans in the conversation, "Now, there was a nice man." He put his hands in his pockets, "Hold on, what have I got in here?" he pulled a Satsuma out of his pocket making Rose giggle and Jordan roll her eyes, "A Satsuma. Ah, that friend of your mothers, he does like his snacks doesn't he? But doesn't that just sum up Christmas?" the Doctor draped his free arm around Tory's shoulders and the group walked back towards the doors, the Doctor throwing the Satsuma in the air and catching it, "You go through all those presents and right at the end, tucked away at the bottom, there's always one stupid old Satsuma. Who wants a Satsuma?"

Suddenly a roar came from behind them, the Doctor didn't even turn, he just threw the Satsuma at a button on the side of the ship, the Sycorax Leader screamed. The Doctor's smile faded.

"No second chances." The deadly seriousness was back, "I'm that sort of a man."

They went back inside the ship and stood in front of the TARDIS, the Doctor stepped forward, leaving Tory beside Jordan.

"By the ancient rites of combat, I forbid you to scavenge here for the rest of time. And when go you back to the stars and tell others of this planet... when you tell them of its riches, its people, its potential. When you talk of the Earth, then make sure that you tell them this: It is defended."

The Sycorax activated the teleport and they vanished.

)0(

They appeared on a street.

"Where are we?" Rose asked.

"We're just off Bloxom Road. We're just round the corner, we did it!" Mickey cheered, laughing and jumping up and down in glee. The Doctor held up his hand stopping the other male.

"Wait a minute... wait a minute..." the ship took flight, disappearing into the sky. The Doctor grinned.

"Go on, my son!" Mickey shouted, "Oh, yeah!" Rose jumped onto his back.

"Yeah! Don't come back!"

"It is defended!" Mickey quoted. They laughed happily. Rose jumped off his back, hugged him then moved around the group hugging everyone. Jordan and Tory moved away from the happy group and grinned at each other.

"Let's get out of here." Tory suggested.

"Yeah." Jordan agreed, "You gonna say goodbye?"

"Nah," Tory shrugged, "We'll see 'em again."

"Alright." Jordan glanced at Tory.

"Milady?" Tory offered her arm.

"Why of course good sir." Jordan laughed, loping her armed through Tory's offered one. The walked away.

It was minutes later that the sky exploded with a green laser, hitting the retreating Sycorax and destroying their ship.

"Harriet did the right thing." Jordan spoke up.

"She did." Tory agreed, "The Doctor won't like it though."

)0(

They'd only just arrived home when the TARDIS materialised inside of their living room. Jordan and Tory shared an eye roll before standing and waiting patiently for the Doctor to show his face. The door opened and the Doctor stuck his head around it.

"You didn't think that you were getting out of Christmas dinner, did you?" he grinned suddenly and stepped to the side. The two women shrugged and walked into the blue box.

)0(

Dinner at the Tyler's was a loud affair, Tory and Jordan both promised to visit Jackie in the future before the end of the meal, if only to taste her cooking again.

Jordan and Rose sat together and quietly Jordan dispelled any of Rose's remaining fears about regeneration.

Tory sat beside the Doctor, both of them ate one handed as her right and his left hand remained joined under the table.

When they went outside and saw the 'snow' the Doctor pulled Tory aside.

"Come with me?" he asked. Tory grinned up at him.

"I'd love to, but I can't."

"Why not?!" he demanded.

"You're going to see me and Jordan really soon."

"Ah."

"Next time." She reassured him, squeezing the hand she still held, "Ask me again another time and I promise I'll say yes." The Doctors answering grin was almost blinding.

"I'll hold you to that." he warned.

"Oh, I bet you will." She winked and they walked back to the others.

)0(

Me: the whole Tory is possessive because she loves him is only partly right you'll find out the real reason in chapter 13.

Tory: Donna Noble and the Christmas star.

Me: Tory, do us a favour, shut up.

Tory: *sulks*

Timmy: Oh before I forget! Tory will not always be bouncing around this book is all series 2 and 3 from here and all in order, mostly. It's a series 2, a 2, then the x-mas special and the rest are all series 3. Hope that answers your question.

Me: Tivia100! My favourite reviewer! You are almost completely right, if no one else is closer then you get the prize! Who are you gonna ask?

Timmy: I would love to see Pears again but you don't have to invite these idiots.

Me and Tory: Oi!

Tory: Shut up dino! 

Me: what she said! 


	11. Jordan's Journeys School Reunion

School Reunion

)0(

Me: Oh yeah, should probably warn you, the time scale for this episode is changed just a little bit just so it makes more sense to everyone.

Timmy: warning fluff ahead. 

Tory: shut it dino! ROMANCE NOT FLUFF!

Timmy: *shrug* same thing.

Tory: no its not! Its

Me: *interrupting* at least go argue way from me if you have to argue about this.

Tory & Timmy: Fine! *leave room still arguing*

Me: *head hits desk* why do I put up with those two anyway? Right, I need to say something and I can't remember what it is…..

Tory: *yelling from other room* You need to tell The Final Shadow!

Me: Right! *yells back* thanks T!

Tory: welcome!

Me: right I was looking over the past reviews for my story, looking for inspiration and realised that you, The Final Shadow, was as close as Tivia100 when you suggested what you thought was up with Tory! I'm so sorry for missing that! So you and Tivia100 both get to ask 1 question from any of the characters, including myself, Jordan, Tory, Timmy and Legend-wait-for-it-Dary. Choose well! :D

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary: Tivia100 if you want to change your question you can if you don't just tell us and we'll answer it in the next chapter!

Me: and finally! We're getting on a plane to New Zealand today so we can't update for the next few days which is why this chapter is going up early okay?

)0(

The guards dragged their unresisting prisoner down the corridor, the jeers of the other occupants of the dungeons where ignored. They threw her into an empty cell and slammed the door shut behind her. The prisoner shot to her feet and ran up to the bars.

"You can take my life but you will never take my freedom!" she snarled at them in a bad impression of a Scottish accent. The guards laughed.

"The king wants you alive pretty girl." The one on the left spoke up.

"Well you can tell the king to go fuc-" she was cut off as her phone rang, "You have got to be kiddin' me." She sighed and pulled it out, holding one finger up at the guards; telling them to hold that thought. "What?"

"Hey it's me." Jordan's voice came down the phone.

"I know," Tory sighed, "I have this amazing thing called caller ID!"

"Right," Jordan laughed, "You doing anything important?" Tory glanced at the guards.

"Nope."

"Good, get to headquarters, five seconds ago." Jordan hung up. Tory put the phone back in her pocket and grinned at her guards.

"Well it's been fun but I've gotta go. It's not you, it's me," she paused, "no it's definitely you." Then she was gone.

)0(

"We've got a mission for you," the major started the moment Tory entered the room, Jordan was already inside.

"Well hello to you to." Tory muttered as she sat down.

The Major was an unpleasant older man that was under the impression that Tory had undergone plastic surgery for a mission and chosen not to have the operation reversed afterwards due to preferring how she looked now; he thought she was conceited and a security risk. Tory thought he was a rather unpleasant individual that could do with having the long pointed instrument removed from his arse. But that was just her opinion.

"We need you to investigate a school," he gestured at the single file on the table, Tory let Jordan skim it before catching it out of the air as it was thrown at her from the other side of the table.

"School has record results and multiple sightings," Tory frowned at the file, "almost half the staff replaced overnight. It's worth the time."

"So glad to have your approval." The Major drawled, "We have covers for you. Lt. Mason you are going to be a substitute P.E. teacher and you Williams are the full time music teacher." The major left the room.

Tory glared at his back.

"I hate that man."

"Trust me," Jordan laughed, "the feeling is mutual."

)0(

Tory and Jordan were welcomed into the school by the headmaster himself; a Mr Finch. They were escorted to their classrooms and given a tour of the school and that was it for the first day.

The second day they both taught until lunch and met up in the staffroom where a surprise was waiting for them.

The Doctor.

He was sitting on a desk nibbling at a biscuit with another teacher pacing up and down in front of him. Tory and Jordan both blinked, shrugged and moved to the coffee machine.

"But yesterday, I had a twelve-year-old girl give me the exact height of the Walls of Troy... in cubits." Both women slowly made their way over, staying behind the Doctor.

"And, it's ever since the new headmaster arrived?" the Doctor asked.

"Finch arrived three months ago. Next day, half the staff got flu. Finch replaced them with that lot." The teacher gestured over the Doctor's shoulder, Tory and Jordan turned quickly so he wouldn't see their faces, at a bunch of smartly dressed teachers, "Except for the teacher you replaced and the teachers Miss Williams and Miss Mason took over for, and that was just plain weird, them winning the lottery like that." Tory grinned and Jordan rolled her eyes.

"How's that weird?" the Doctor asked innocently, "And who are Mason and Williams?"

"They never played!" the teacher exclaimed, "Said the ticket was posted through their doors at midnight."

"Hmm!" Tory chimed in stealing on the table beside the Doctor, "The world is rather odd."

"Mr Parson," Jordan greeted the teacher the Doctor had been talking to, "How are you today?" Jordan led the man off to continue their conversation while Tory spoke to the Doctor.

"U.N.I.T. got some strange readings," she explained in an undertone, "but we can't talk about it here." The Doctor nodded a grin on his face, "What?"

"Perfect chance for that dinner and date you promised me." He winked, jumped off the table and walked away, leaving Tory to gape after him.

)0(

"What are you doing?" Jordan asked incredulously as she hovered in the open doorway to Tory's room. The room itself was a disaster zone, clothes flung all over the place. Tory didn't answer more occupied wrestling a pair of shoes from under one of the mountainous piles of clothes. Jordan stepped into the room fully and pulled Tory away from the pile at the same time as freeing the shoes.

"Thanks." Tory hugged her before grabbing the shoes and darting away to the other side of the room.

"What are you doing?" Jordan asked again as she absentmindedly stepped over Tory's floor-drobe, following in the other woman's footsteps.

"I've got a date!" Tory paused long enough to grin madly before diving back into the plies of clothes, almost covering her shoes again before Jordan snatched them out of harm's way.

"Really?" Jordan frowned, the expression going unnoticed as Tory continued to dig for something, "I thought you had a thing for the Doctor." Tory straightened and turned to face her.

"Yeah….that's who I'm going out with." Jordan grinned and a matching one spread across Tory's face.

The two let out girlish squeals that if you asked them about later NEVER happened. The sound of the TARDIS materialising was covered by the noise.

The Doctor walked out of the TARDIS and straight into the kitchen to get a calming cup of tea while Rose followed, Mickey just behind her.

"Oh come on Doctor!" Rose playfully begged, "It'll be like a double date."

"Yeah Doc," Mickey agreed, ignoring the glare he got for shortening the Doctors name, "I want to get to know her too! Rose talks about you and her all the time." Mickey dodged the hit Rose sent his way for that comment and winked over his shoulder at her, earning a giggle.

"Why don't we see what Tory has to say then?" Rose suggested as the Doctor still looked hesitant. Rose gave the Doctor a careful once over, "Are you sure you want to wear that?"

"What's wrong with it?" the Doctor asked defensively, "It's what I always wear."

"Exactly mate," Mickey spoke up as he rooted around in the cupboards looking for a clean mug, "do you think she's gonna be wearing what she usually wears?"

"Why not? I think it looks brilliant on her." The Doctor continued to defend.

Jordan walked into the room, pausing on seeing the Doctor's pinstripe suit and tie.

"Oh no you don't." she growled, grabbing his arm and dragging him towards the TARDIS, "If I have to deal with Tory in what-the-hell-should-i-wear mode you have to look just as good!" she opened the door, shoved him inside and followed with a shout of: "Wardrobe! NOW!"

Mickey and Rose laughed. Mickey wrapped his arms around Rose's waist causing her to lean back against him.

"You really want to get to know her?" Rose asked.

"Yeah!" Mickey paused, "I didn't exactly make a good impression last time we met, calling her a 'thing' an' all, an' if she's your friend I thought; why not make an effort?" Rose smiled, turning in Mickey's arms and kissing him lightly on the lips.

"You're the best boyfriend ever."

"I know." Mickey replied, earning himself another slap on the arm.

Tory walked into the room.

"Rose! Mickey!" she smiled at them, "How do I look?" she twirled showing off her simple white dress; it fell to her knees it a simple yet extravagant style, with a black sash around her waist that ended in a small bow, the ends trailing down, it was strapless and matched with the high heels she was wearing on her feet, they had their own ribbons winding up to her shins to hold them in place.

"You look gorgeous." Rose grinned, "The Doctor will love it!"

"You think so?" Tory asked, wanting an honest opinion.

"Yeah," Mickey spoke up this time, "He'll fall on his knees and praise you as a goddess." Tory laughed as Mickey got hit again, "What did I do this time?"

Rose smiled sweetly and didn't answer.

"Whatever." Mickey muttered, "I err I got you this," he pulled a small box out of his jeans pocket, "to apologise for what I said the last time we met."

"You didn't have to." Tory reassured him, taking the box when he continued to hold it out, "but thank you."

"I thought you could wear it tonight." Mickey suggested, ignoring the slightly awkward feeling in his gut. Tory gave him another smile before opening the box.

"Ohh, it's beautiful!" Tory pulled a plain silver chain out of the box.

"It's an anklet," Rose explained, "we got it plain so you could add charms to it." Tory grinned at them.

"Thank you." She placed the box down on the kitchen counter before bending over and putting the anklet on.

"You're welcome." Rose answered, nudging Mickey in the side.

"Yeah." He agreed, rubbing his side.

Tory straightened.

"We wanted to ask you something," Rose spoke up, "what do you think about going on a double date?"

"I'd love to, but what about Jordan?"

"She can come to." Mickey put in, "I've got a mate she could take."

"Humm, might not work if we end up talking about classified things." Tory pointed out, Mickey and Rose both nodded, "I could invite someone for work," Tory mused, "but they'd fangirl over the Doctor."

"Girl?" Mickey asked.

"Yeah, girl." Tory stared at him a moment not realising what Mickey was asking, "Isn't that the expression?"

"Yeah," Rose smothered her laughter, "Yeah it is." Tory shrugged.

"Hey, speaking of, where is Jordan?"

"In the TARDIS, helping the Doctor get dressed." Rose explained.

"Ah," Tory grinned, "I pity him, wonder which one of them will come out alive." Tory chuckled.

"Probably Jordan." Rose laughed.

"Probably." Tory agreed.

Jordan walked out of the TARDIS; a smug grin on her face, Tory stared at her with wide eyes.

"Please tell me he's still alive!" she exclaimed.

"What?" Jordan stared, "Of course he is." Jordan walked passed her and into the kitchen, grabbing a glass and getting herself a drink from the tap.

"Thank god." Tory muttered.

"You look good, by the way." Jordan told her.

"Thanks." Tory smiled.

"Me, Mickey and Rose are staying here," Jordan continued, "the Doctor wants you to himself tonight." Tory blushed while Rose looked slightly disappointed.

The TARDIS doors opened and the Doctor stepped out, blushing slightly as he rubbed the back of his neck. He stopped and stared when he caught sight of Tory, Rose clearing her throat brought him back.

"You look amazing." He muttered, Tory blushed.

"Thank you." They stared at each other again, "So do you."

"Well," he dragged out the word, "Jordan got to me." The Doctor was wearing a black tux, white shirt and black tie, his hair stuck up in its normal gravity defying manner and he was still wearing converse trainers but Tory wouldn't have it any other way. "Ready to go?" he asked.

"Yeah." She walked over to him, taking his offered hand.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" Jordan yelled over her shoulder as the two entered the TARDIS.

"Not much on that list!" Tory yelled back as the TARDIS door closed and the machine dematerialised.

"Good point." Jordan grinned.

"How long do you think it'll take?" Rose asked as she and Mickey sat down on the couch.

"How long will what take?" Mickey questioned, both women rolled their eyes.

"For the two of them to admit they're in love." Jordan explained, sitting down in the armchair next to the couch Rose and Mickey had claimed, "At least two dates." She answered Rose.

"I think it'll take longer."

"Hang on," Mickey interrupted, "how do you know they're in love?" Rose and Jordan rolled their eyes.

"Men." The two women sighed.

)0(

"Where are we going?" Tory asked as she and the Doctor dashed around the console.

"It's a surprise!" he told her as he slammed a hammer down on one of the buttons.

"Don't hit her!" Tory protested, the Doctor looked around the central column at her and winked, "Idiot." Tory complained playfully.

"But you like me anyway!"

"Yeah, I think I should get my head checked!"

"Hey!" the TARDIS landed and the Doctor walked towards her, "I like your head just the way it is, thank you." Tory smiled at him.

"So, go on, where and when are we?"

"See for yourself." He gestured towards the doors grandly.

"I know why your companions love this now." She muttered as she headed for the door, "Every step's an adventure."

"Always." He followed her down the ramp and smiled at her as she paused in front of the doors and took a deep breath before pulling the doors open.

"Oh!" outside was an alien planet, three moons in the sky and snow covering the landscape, "It's amazing." Tory turned back to him and he felt his hearts skip at the look on her face.

"All yours." He waved out at the planet, Tory grinned and placed one foot out of the TARDIS letting her shoe make an imprint in the snow.

"I'm really not dressed for this." She muttered before stepping out fully, "Oh its cold." She wrapped her arms around herself. The Doctor followed her out, dropping his trench coat over her shoulders.

"Here." He offered, staying behind her to try and see the world through her eyes.

"Thanks."

He stood behind her and they looked over the landscape together. After a moment Tory lent back against the Doctors chest, causing him to wrap his arms around her and hold her to him.

)0(

The next day Tory taught all the way through the morning so she couldn't go and track down the Doctor to talk about how much last night had meant to her; they had ended the night in Tory and Jordan's flat, Rose, Mickey and Jordan all fast asleep on different pieces of furniture around them, with a simple but meaningful kiss and a promise to go out again next time they got the chance. Neither of them could wait for it.

It was lunch before the two had a chance to talk and they were taking full advantage of it, standing together slightly away from all the other teachers in the staffroom. Jordan walked over to them carrying two teas and one coffee in one hand like it was the easiest thing in the world. She gave one tea to the Doctor and the coffee to Tory, keeping the last tea for herself.

"Excuse me," Mr Finch spoke up as he entered the room, a slightly older woman behind him, "colleagues, a moment of your time." All the teachers turned to him, the Doctor and Tory staring in surprise as they recognised the woman, "May I introduce Miss Sarah Jane Smith. Miss Smith is a journalist, who's writing a profile about me for the Sunday Times." Sarah Jane smiled around at them all, not recognising the Doctor in his new regeneration even as he stared, his mouth curling up in a slight smile. "I thought it might be useful for her to get 'a view from the trenches', so to speak. Don't spare my blushes." Mr Finch smiled at them, nodded to Sarah Jane and then left.

Sarah Jane glanced around the room as the teachers went back to their conversations and caught the Doctor's eye she walked over.

"Hello!" she greeted.

"Oh, I should think so!" the Doctor grinned, excitedly.

"And, you are...?" Sarah Jane asked. The Doctor couldn't take his eyes off her, Jordan smirked in the background as Tory explained just who Sarah Jane was before returning to the Doctor's side to save him from embarrassing herself.

"Hm?" he jerked as Tory elbowed him, "Uh, Smith. John Smith."

"John Smith?" Sarah Jane repeated a sad smile on her face, "I used to have a friend who sometimes went by that name."

"Well, it's a very common name!" he answered.

"He was a very uncommon man." She held out her hand, "Nice to meet you!" he took her hand and shook it in two of his. Tory hid a smile. Once the Doctor let go Tory offered her own hand.

"Tory Williams," she introduced herself, "music teacher."

"Sarah Jane Smith." She paused, "Um... so, um, have you two worked here long?"

"No!" the Doctor answered, "Um, it's only my second day."

"My third." Tory shrugged.

"Oh, you're new, then?" Sarah Jane smiled, "So, what do you think of the school? I mean, this new curriculum? So many children getting ill, doesn't that strike you as odd?" Tory watched the Doctor hide a proud smile.

"You don't sound like someone just doing a profile." He told her.

"Well, no harm in a little investigation while I'm here." Sarah Jane told him.

"No." he agreed, "Good for you." She walked away and greeted the group with Jordan in it, "Good for you. Oh, good for you, Sarah Jane Smith."

Tory smiled up at him.

"She did well for herself."

"That she did," the Doctor agreed, "that she did."

)0(

That night Tory and Jordan grinned at each other as they opened the emergency exit into the school for the Doctor, Mickey and Rose to walk in.

"And what time do you call this?" Tory teased. The Doctor grinned at her. Jordan fell into step beside Rose as Tory walked on the Doctor's right, taking his hand.

"Oh, it's weird seeing school at night." Rose muttered, "It just feels wrong." They started walking down the corridor, "When I was a kid, I used to think all the teachers slept in school." She grinned at the memories.

"All right, team." The Doctor paused, "Oh, I hate people who say "team". Um... "gang". Um..."comrades". Uh... anyway, Rose, Jordan, go to the kitchen and get a sample of that oil. Mickey, the new staff are all Maths teachers, go and check out the Maths department. I'm gonna look in Finch's office, Tory you're with me. Be back here in ten minutes." He took off up the stairs, dragging Tory with him.

"Bets on whether we're gonna catch them kissing in a closet?" Jordan joked.

)0(

The Doctor and Tory walked towards the Headmasters office quickly but were distracted by the sound of shrieking and flapping. They paused before walking faster towards the source of the noise.

Instead they found Sarah Jane backing out of the store room where the Doctor had hidden the TARDIS. The human turned around slowly and saw the Doctor and Tory standing in the shadows, watching her.

"Hello, Sarah Jane." He greeted her quietly.

"It's you." Sarah Jane whispered, "Oh... Doctor..." she started to smile as she edged towards him. Tory stayed silent by his side, "Oh, my God, it's you, it's... it's..." she paused, "you've regenerated."

"Half a dozen times since we last met." The Doctor told her.

"You look... incredible."

"So do you."

"I got old." Sarah Jane dismissed him. She walked around the pair in a circle studying him, "What're you doing here?"

"Well... UFO sightings, school gets record results, I couldn't resist." He shrugged, "What about you?"

"Same." They laughed. Sarah Jane stared at him with a smile before it faltered and fell. "I thought you'd died." She sounded close to tears, "I waited for you and you didn't come back, and I thought you must've died."

"I lived." He answered, "Everyone else died."

"What do you mean?" Sarah Jane asked, noticing the way Tory took his hand to comfort him.

"Everyone died, Sarah." He repeated quiet pain in his voice.

"I'm here," Tory spoke up, "I'm here, I'm not gone." The Doctor squeezed her hand in thanks. Sarah Jane smiled at the pair of them.

"Are you a Time….Lady too?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"I can't believe it's you." Sarah Jane muttered in disbelief. The moment ended with the sound of a high pitched scream, "Okay! Now I can!" they all grinned at each other before running off down the hall in the direction of the scream. They almost crashed into Rose as she skidded down a converging corridor.

"Did you hear that?" she demanded, worried about Mickey, before noticing Sarah Jane, "Who's she?"

"Rose, Sarah Jane!" the Doctor introduced them with a happy grin, "Sarah Jane, Rose." Rose looked at Tory, a surprised and unhappy look on her face. Tory frowned.

"Where's Jordan?" she asked sharply. Rose looked behind her.

"She was behind me a second ago."

Tory started to walk passed Rose when the Doctor grabbed her hand, ignoring Rose and Sarah Jane interacting behind him.

"I have to find her." Tory told him.

"I know, just be careful, alright?"

"No promises." She grinned and winked before running off down the corridor.

"Hi." Sarah Jane spoke with a fake smile, "Nice to meet you." She turned to the Doctor, trying to distract him from worrying about Tory, "You can tell you're getting older, your assistants are getting younger."

"I'm not his assistant." Rose protested, outraged.

"No?" Sarah Jane frowned, confused, "But I thought…" whatever she was about to say next was cut off as the Doctor started running again, the opposite direction to Tory and towards the scream.

)0(

"What are you doing?" Tory asked as she walked up behind Jordan who was bent over one of the computers in one of the I.T. rooms. Jordan jumped at the sound of her voice.

"Don't sneak up on me like that!" Jordan scowled.

"You left Rose and wandered off, why?" Tory asked.

"I wanted to see if I could hack into one of the computers." Jordan explained.

"So you didn't hear the screaming then?"

"What screaming?" Jordan demanded dropping the computer part she was working on. Tory shrugged.

"The screaming."

"What are we standing around here for then?" Jordan demanded, "Lead the way."

Tory grinned and started running, throwing a casual:

"Yes boss!" over her shoulder.

They made it to the Headmaster's office at the same time as the others.

"Are you traveling with the Doctor too?" Sarah Jane asked once she recognised Jordan as another teacher.

"No." Jordan answered, "I'm with Tory. Who was screaming?" she asked looking over the group for damages.

"Sorry, it was only me." Mickey apologised, "I got covered in rats." Jordan and Tory nodded at him.

"Oooohh," Jordan muttered, "I hate it when that happens." Everyone except Tory sent her a questioning look.

"You don't want to know." Tory told them gravely.

The Doctor was using the sonic on the door but spoke as he worked.

"Maybe those rats were food." He suggested.

"Food for what?" Rose asked. The Doctor opened the door and peered inside, his eyes fixed on the celling.

"Rose... you know you used to think all the teachers slept in the school...?" the Doctor asked as he pushed the door open completely so everyone could see in, "Well... they do." Everyone stared up at the celling where 13 giant bat-like creatures hung upside down.

"No way!" Mickey muttered, turning and running for it, Sarah Jane, Rose and Jordan following.

Tory and the Doctor slipped out of the room quietly, closing the door before following the humans.

Outside they stopped running, Mickey lent over to catch his breath.

"I am not going back in there." He protested, "No way."

"Those were teachers!" Rose realised.

"When Finch arrived," the Doctor explained, "he brought with him seven new teachers, four dinner ladies and a nurse. Thirteen. Thirteen big bat people. Come on." He jerked his head and started walking back towards the school, Rose and Sarah Jane following him while Tory and Jordan moved over to Mickey, worried about him.

"Come on," Mickey protested, not moving, "you've got to be kidding!"

"I need the TARDIS." The Doctor explained in an annoyed tone as he realised that Tory, Jordan and Mickey were hanging back, "I've got to analyse that oil from the kitchen."

"I might be able to help you, there." Sarah Jane grinned as an idea came to her, "I've got something to show you!" she grabbed the Doctors arm excitedly and dragged him towards the car park.

Rose glared after the pair and once they were out of ear shot turned to Tory.

"Aren't you upset; she's hanging all over him!?"

Tory looked confused.

"Why would that upset me?"

"He's your boyfriend!"

Tory froze.

"He's not….we're not…" Tory trailed off, biting her lip, "and even if we were I would let him see her, she's an old friend, it would be wrong to stop him from seeing her."

"Come on." Jordan walked after the Doctor and Sarah Jane, "They're waiting for us."

In the car park Sarah Jane opened the boot of her car, while the others gathered round. Something was inside, covered by a blanket. Sarah Jane pulled the blanket off revealing a robot dog.

"K9!" the Doctor exclaimed, delighted, "Rose Tyler, Mickey Smith, Jordan Mason, Tory Williams allow me to introduce K9... Well, K9 Mark III to be precise." Mickey and Rose glanced at each other, Jordan rolled her eyes and Tory climbed into the boot beside the dog.

"Why does he look so... disco?" Rose asked.

"Oi! Listen, in the year five thousand, this was cutting edge!" the Doctor defended, "What's happened to him?"

"Oh, one day, he just... nothing!" Sarah Jane explained.

"Well, didn't you try and get him repaired?!" The Doctor asked. Rose and Mickey shared another look while Jordan shook her head.

"Stupid question Doctor." Jordan muttered.

"Well, it's not like getting parts for a mini-metro!" Sarah Jane exclaimed, "Besides, the technology inside him could rewrite human science. I couldn't show him to anyone!"

"Ooh, what's the nasty lady done to you?" the Doctor cooed, scratching K9 behind the 'ears', "Eh?"

Mickey stared, Jordan laughed, Tory fiddled with some wires inside of K9 as she tried to repair him, Sarah Jane shot Rose a triumphant glance and Rose scowled.

"Look, no offense but could you two just stop petting for a minute?" Rose snapped, "Never mind the tin dog, we're busy!" The Doctor helped Tory climb out of the boot, a massive grin on his face before letting Jordan close it and climbing into the car.

)0(

They all piled out of the car at the nearest chip shop, the Doctor and Mickey carrying K9 in and placing him onto a table. Tory sat in front of him and started fiddling again causing Jordan to roll her eyes and wander off to the counter, quickly followed by Rose and Mickey.

Sarah Jane sat on one side of Tory while the Doctor took the other.

"I can't believe him," Rose fumed as the three young humans sat down at a table out of ear shot of the two Time Lords and Sarah Jane, "all this time and he's never mentioned her!"

"Maybe he doesn't want to remember?" Jordan suggested as she stole one of Rose's chips.

Rose huffed.

"And what about Tory?" Rose continued.

"What about her?" Mickey asked.

"Is he just gonna replace her one day too?" Jordan froze.

"If he hurts her he loses his ability to reproduce, simple as." Jordan growled. Mickey flinched in shared pain at just what Jordan was suggesting.

"Remind me never to get on your bad side." he muttered, making Jordan smirk in a way that wasn't overly reassuring.

"I thought of you on Christmas Day." Sarah Jane spoke up suddenly making the Doctor glance over at her, rather than watch what Tory was doing to K9, "This Christmas just gone? Great big spaceship overhead, I thought, "Oh, yeah. Bet he's up there"."

"Right on top of it, yeah." He agreed.

"And Rose?" Sarah Jane asked cautiously.

"She was there too." The Doctor answered.

"And me," Tory spoke up, "and Jordan, Mickey, Harriet Jones and her assistant." She paused, "Give me the sonic." She held out her hand for it. When the Doctor didn't move fast enough she turned and started going through his jacket herself, making him blush. "Ah-ha!" she sat back, screwdriver in hand and went back to work.

"Did I do something wrong?" Sarah Jane asked suddenly, "Because you never came back for me. You just... dumped me."

"I told you." The Doctor explained, "I was called back home and in those days humans weren't allowed."

"I waited for you." Sarah Jane muttered sadly, "I missed you."

"Oh, you didn't need me!" he brushed her off, "You were getting on with your life."

"You were my life." She argued causing him to turn and look at her properly, "You know what the most difficult thing was? Coping with what happens next, and with what doesn't happen next. You took me to the furthest reaches of the galaxy, you showed me supernovas, intergalactic battles and then you just dropped me back on Earth. How could anything compare to that?"

"All those things you saw, do you want me to apologize for that?" he asked with a frown.

"No, but we get a taste of that splendour... and then we have to go back."

"But look at you," he smiled, "you're investigating. You found that school; you're doing what we always did."

"You could've come back."

"I couldn't." he told her quietly.

"Why not?" she whispered. Tory reached out and grabbed the Doctors hand, doing the repairs one-handed as he refused to let go. "It wasn't Croydon," Sarah Jane continued, changing the subject, "where you dropped me off, it wasn't Croydon!"

"Where was it?"

"Aberdeen." She answered irritably.

"Right." He paused, "That's next to Croydon, isn't it?" Sarah Jane smiled and shook her head.

Tory lent back from the inner workings of K9 and rescued her hand from the Doctor to grab a napkin and wipe her face just as K9 turned on.

"Oh, hey!" the Doctor celebrated, "Now we're in business!" he stood and walked around the table so he was in front of K9's head.

**Master!**

"He recognizes me!" the Doctor was ecstatic.

**Affirmative.**

"Rose, give us the oil." He held out his hand, Rose, Mickey and Jordan all walked over, Rose doing as she was told while Jordan threw a packet of Skittles at Tory, who caught them and grinned.

"Bribery will get you everywhere." Tory joked with a smirk.

The Doctor took the top off the oil and was about to put his finger in when Rose interrupted.

"I wouldn't touch it, though, that dinner lady got all scalded." The blonde warned.

"I'm no dinner lady." The Doctor answered her gravely, "And I don't often say that." he dipped his finger in the oil as K9 put out a sensor for the Doctor to smear it on, which he proceed to do, "Here we go. Come on, boy. Here we go."

**Oil. Ex, ex, ex, extract ana, an... analysing...**

"Listen to it, man!" Mickey, grinned, "That's a voice!"

"Careful! That's my dog!" Sarah Jane defended. Mickey looked sheepish.

"I want one!" Jordan whispered to Tory.

"Christmas." She promised.

**Confirmation of analysis: substance is Krillitane Oil.**

"They're Krillitanes." The Doctor realised.

"Is that bad?" Rose asked.

"Very." He answered, "Think of how bad things could possibly be, and add another suitcase full of bad."

"And what are... Krillitanes?" Sarah Jane added.

"They're a composite race. Just like your culture is a mixture of traditions from all sorts of countries, people you've invaded or have been invaded by, you've got bits, bits of Viking, bits of France, bits of whatever... the Krillitanes are the same. An amalgam of the races they've conquered. But they take physical aspects as well. They cherry-pick the best bits from the people they destroy. That's why I didn't recognize them. The last time I saw Krillitanes, they looked just like us except they had really long necks."

"What're they doing here?" Rose asked.

"It's the children." The Doctor realised, "They're doing something to the children."

"Then we're gonna stop it." Jordan growled, "One call and U.N.I.T. will be out here."

"U.N.I.T." Sarah Jane muttered, surprised, "I didn't know you were one of theirs."

"It's why I recognised you." Jordan shrugged.

"We both are." Tory added, "Though I'm more of a consultant."

"You're still on the pay-roll y'know?" Jordan told the Doctor suddenly, "Massive bank account."

"Really?" he asked distracted.

"Yeah." Tory confirmed, "Every year they donate some to Doctors Without Borders, some higher up thought you'd like the irony." Tory explained with a grin.

"We have to get back to the school," the Doctor interrupted, "We need more information."

"Let's go then." Tory stood and walked out the shop, Jordan following.

Mickey and Sarah Jane picked up K9 and carried him out to the car, placing him back in the boot.

"So, what's the deal with the tin dog?" Mickey asked as they settled down to wait for the Doctor and Rose, Tory and Jordan standing a short ways off.

"The Doctor likes travelling with an entourage. Sometimes they're humans, sometimes they're aliens, and sometimes... they're tin dogs." Mickey laughed, "What about you? Where do you fit in the picture?" Sarah Jane questioned.

"Me?" Mickey started enthusiastically, "I'm their Man in Havana. I'm the technical support, I'm..." he paused, "Oh, my God. I'm the tin dog." He sat down on the edge of the boot in shock, making Sarah laugh and pat him on the shoulder.

Tory and Jordan walked over.

"It could be worse," Tory tried to comfort him, "you could be Jar-jar Binks." Jordan rolled her eyes and slapped Tory across the back of her head. "Hey!" Jordan ignored her and spoke to Mickey.

"If you want field experience U.N.I.T. 'll take you." Jordan suggested, "I could use someone else around my department." Tory grinned suddenly.

"Or you could come with me." She suggested.

"Go with you." Mickey repeated.

"I travel, just like the Doctor; I just get to where I'm actually going more often than he does." Tory joked. Mickey frowned, considering both offers, "Take the U.N.I.T. job," Tory suggested, "If you work with Jordan I'll end up taking you places anyway so that way you get paid as well."

Mickey nodded but didn't any anything.

Sarah Jane shot the two females a smile.

Rose and the Doctor left the chip shop, talking angrily but too far away for human ears to hear, Tory ignored them out of respect.

Suddenly one of the Krillitane's swooped off one of the nearby buildings, screeching. They ducked but it just flew over them. Mickey and Sarah Jane jumped to their feet and ran towards the Doctor and Rose while Tory and Jordan started to run after the Krillitane.

"Tory! Don't!" the Doctor yelled after them.

Tory and Jordan ran in an easy, controlled manner, keeping pace with each other effortlessly.

"It's heading back towards the school." Tory realised, speaking out loud just in case Jordan didn't. Tory saw Jordan nod out of the corner of her eye. They skidded to a stop when Jordan signalled that she needed to rest.

"Why are we running?" Jordan panted, "When you can just poof us there?"

"Poof?" Tory repeated, sounding outranged, "Poof?"

"Yes," Jordan hissed, "POOF." Tory shrugged.

"It seemed like a good idea at the time?"

Jordan glared.

"I HATE you."

"Love you too dear." Tory responded casually, glancing around the street, "Do you know where we are?" she asked suddenly, not recognising where they were.

"I was following you." Jordan had her breath back and straightened, looking around in the same way as Tory, "But no, I have no idea where we are."

Silence.

"Well this is embarrassing."

)0(

The next morning, after 'poof-ing' home to find a rather frantic Doctor waiting for them and calming him down, Jordan and Tory climbed into the back of Sarah Jane's car. Tory wedged between the Doctor and Mickey while Jordan got in the back beside K9 and Rose sat up front with Sarah Jane.

"This is cosy." Tory grinned. The Doctor glanced down at her but didn't answer as he went back to staring out of the window. Tory frowned at him, "What's up?" she muttered, low enough that the humans couldn't catch what she was saying.

"Nothing." He answered distractedly. Tory sighed; if he didn't want to talk about it fine, but she would be here when he did. She reached out and took his hand, playing with his fingers, much the same way she had to his previous regeneration. He seemed to relax into the seat as she lent on his shoulder. He rested his chin on the top of her head; matching, unnoticed, grins grew on both their faces.

They pulled up to the school just as the bell was ringing for the start of the day, bad form for any teacher. The group climbed out, leaving K9 behind, and walked towards the school. The Doctor paused, holding Tory's hand, to give out instructions.

"Rose and Sarah, you go to the Maths room. Crack open those computers, I need to see the hardware inside. Here, you might need this." Rose held out her hand expecting the sonic to be placed in it but the Doctor handed it to Sarah Jane, Rose curled her hand into a fist and let it drop back to her side, "Tory, Jordan I want you inside the school; try and work out if the kids have any lasting damage. Mickey, surveillance. I want you outside."

"Just stand outside?" Mickey asked as the others started to walk forwards again.

"Here," Sarah Jane turned and threw him her car keys, "take these, you can keep K9 company."

"Don't forget to leave the window open a crack." The Doctor called over his shoulder.

"But he's metal!" Mickey protested.

"I didn't mean for him."

"So, boss man, what're you gonna be doing?" Jordan asked.

"It's time I had a word with Mr Finch." He announced darkly.

)0(

Jordan and Tory walked along the mostly empty school corridors silently, glancing in windows as they passed, the kids where in their normal lessons, no hint of anything odd or weird.

Tory shrugged when Jordan sent her a questioning glance.

"Go find Sarah Jane and Rose?" Tory suggested half-heartedly.

"Alright." The two turned and walked back in the opposite direction.

)0(

Sarah Jane was crouched down beside one of the computers while Rose sat in one of the chairs, her legs crossed, not even trying to help. Sarah Jane lifted her head out from under the table and pressed a few buttons on the key board.

"It's not working!" she exclaimed.

"Give it to me." Rose sighed, taking the screwdriver, rolling her eyes and ducked underneath the desk.

"Used to work first time in my day." Sarah Jane muttered.

"Well, things were a lot simpler back then." Rose replied, turning the sonic on and holding it to the back of the computer.

"Rose, can I give you a bit of advice?"

"I've got a feeling you're about to." Rose muttered as she stood up.

"I know how intense a relationship with the Doctor can be, and I don't want you to feel I'm intruding..."

"I don't feel threatened by you if that's what you mean." Rose interrupted.

"Right. Good. Because, I'm not interested in picking up where we left off."

"No?" Rose scoffed, "With the big sad eyes and the robot dog? What else were you doing last night?"

"I was just saying how hard it was adjusting to life back on Earth..."

"The thing is... when you two met... they'd only just got rid of rationing. No wonder all that space stuff was a bit too much for ya."

"I had no problem with space stuff." Sarah Jane argued, "I saw things you wouldn't believe."

"Try me." Rose challenged, coldly.

"Mummies."

"I've met ghosts."

"Robots. Lots of robots."

"Slitheen. In Downing Street."

"Daleks!"

Rose snorted.

"Met the Emperor."

"Anti-Matter monsters." Sarah Jane continued.

"Gas masked zombies."

"Real living dinosaurs!" Sarah Jane's voice getting louder.

"Real living werewolf!" Rose copied her tone.

"The Loch Ness Monster!" Sarah Jane yelled.

"Seriously?" Rose asked stunned. Sarah Jane put her hand to her mouth and shook her head. Rose smiled and laughed slightly, "Listen to us. It's like me and my mate Shireen. The only time we fell out was over a man, and...we're arguing over the Doctor, and the worst part is he's not even ours to argue over."

"So he and Tory….?" Sarah Jane asked.

"Yeah," Rose smiled, "they went on their first date day before yesterday." There was an awkward pause, "With you, did he do that thing where he'd explain something at like, ninety-miles-per-hour, and you'd go, "what?" and he'd look at you like you'd just dribbled on your shirt?"

"All the time!" the two laughed, "Does he still stroke bits of the TARDIS?" Sarah Jane asked.

"Yeah! Yeah! He does! I'm like, "do you two wanna be alone?"" they laughed madly.

The Doctor walked through the doors, looking around for Tory and Jordan.

"How's it going?" he asked. The sight of him just mad the two humans laugh harder, "What?" he asked oblivious, "Listen, I need to find out what's programmed inside these." They took no notice, Rose pointing the sonic at him as they continued to laugh, "What?" he asked again, confused, "Stop it!"

Jordan walked into the room a few moments later, the Doctor had just gotten Sarah Jane and Rose to calm down.

"Where's Tory?" Rose asked, making the Doctor glance up from where he was digging into the inner workings of a computer.

"Keeping the kids out." Jordan shrugged, "Mr Finch ended break early and the kids were told to go to their classrooms." Tory walked in the door.

"I hate teenagers." She muttered, glaring at the door.

"What did they do this time?" Jordan asked.

"Asked me out on a date." Tory muttered. The Doctor dropped the pieces of the computer he was holding.

"Erm….." he bent over and started gathering the dropped pieces, Tory moved towards him to help while Jordan walked over to Rose.

Tory pulled the sonic out from between the Doctors teeth, where he insisted on keeping it, and ran it along the back of the computer he had just ripped a handful of wires from.

"I can't shift it." The Doctor complained as Tory frowned down at the machine, attempting to use her TARDIS side to attempt to hack the thing.

"I thought the sonic screwdriver could open anything!" Sarah Jane protested.

"Anything except a deadlock seal." The Doctor explained, "There's gotta be something inside here. What're they teaching those kids?" Tory glared at the computer like it had personally insulted her as her hacking attempt failed and Jordan was sniggering at her expression.

"You wanted the program," Sarah Jane spoke up suddenly, "there it is."

"Holy Shi-"

"Jordan language!" Tory snapped. Every computer in the I.T. room was displaying a code, including the large glass screen at the front of the class.

"Some sort of code..." the Doctor muttered to himself, staring unblinkingly at the front screen.

"No," Tory's mouth hung open, "It can't be…" her voice was slightly fearful.

"The Skasis Paradigm." The Doctor realised, "They're trying to crack the Skasis Paradigm."

"The what now?" Jordan asked, unsettled by the frightened yet longing look on Tory's face.

"The..." he searched for the right word, "God-maker. The universal theory. Crack that equation and you've got control of the building blocks of the universe. Time and space and matter, yours to control."

"What, and the kids are like a giant computer?" Rose questioned.

"Yes." He started to pace, "And their learning power is being accelerated by the oil! That oil from the kitchens, it works as a... as a... conducting agent. Makes the kids cleverer."

"But that oil's on the chips." Rose pointed out, "I've been eating them."

"What's fifty-nine times thirty-five?" he asked her quickly.

"Two thousand and sixty five." She answered without thinking, "Oh my God..."

"But why use children?" Sarah Jane asked, "Can't they use adults?"

"No, it's gotta be children. The God-maker needs imagination to crack it. They're not just using the children's brains to break the code... they're using their souls."

The doors of the classroom swung open and Mr Finch walked in.

"Let the lesson begin." The Doctor and Tory turned to face him slowly, "Think of it, Doctor, with the Paradigm solved, reality becomes clay in our hands. We can shape the universe and improve it."

"Oh yeah? The whole of creation with the face of Mr Finch. Call me old fashioned, but I like things as they are." The Doctor responded.

"You act like such a radical, and yet all you want to do is preserve the old order. Think of the changes that could be made if this power was used for good." Finch tried to convince him.

"What, by someone like you?" the Doctor scoffed.

"No... someone like you." The Doctor stayed silent, "The Paradigm gives us power, but you could give us wisdom. Become a God. At my side. Imagine what you could do, think of the civilizations you could save. Perganon, Assinta... your own people, Doctor. Standing tall. The Time Lords...reborn."

"Don't," Tory whispered, "don't fall to temptation."

"And you could be by his side forever," Mr Finch turned to her, "You and Miss Mason, together best friends, sisters, 'till the end of time. You could bring back your parents-"

"Those people were never my parents!" Tory spat.

"No," Mr Finch soothed, "Your birth parents, your family."

"Tory," Jordan spoke, "I'm your family."

"But you will die one day," Finch pointed out harshly, "imagine the pain Victoria will feel on that day, imagine it and claim that what I offer is not better."

"Doctor, Tory, don't listen to him." Sarah Jane protested as Jordan ran out of arguments. Mr Finch turned to her and Rose.

"And you could be with him throughout eternity." He tempted, "Young... fresh... never wither, never age... never die. Their lives are so fleeting. So many goodbyes. How lonely you must be, Doctor. Join us." The Doctor and Tory had matching faraway looks in their eyes.

"I could save everyone..." the Doctor muttered, so very tempted.

"Yes." Mr Finch agreed.

"All my sisters," Tory muttered, "the other TARDIS's."

"I could stop the war..." the Doctor whispered. A small smile crossed Finch's lips.

"No!" Sarah Jane cried, desperately, "The universe has to move forward. Pain and loss, they define us as much as happiness or love." Mr Finch closed his eyes, knowing he was losing the Doctor, "Whether it's a world, or a relationship... everything has its time. And everything ends." The Doctor stared for a few more seconds before reaching out and taking Tory's hand. She glanced back at him.

"I'm so sorry." He whispered before letting go of her hand, grabbing a chair and flinging it through the screen, smashing it, "Out!" he shouted, running for the door, Sarah Jane and Rose hot on his heels. Jordan grabbed Tory's hand and pulled her from the room.

They ran blindly down a set of stairs almost running into Mickey and a young boy in the schools uniform.

"What is going on?" Mickey asked. Three of the Krillitanes half flew, half crawled their way along the corridor towards them. The group turned and ran in the opposite direction. They ran into the massive lunch room, across it and tried the doors; locked. The Doctor reached inside his coat for the sonic just as Mr Finch and the Krillitanes burst in the other doors.

"Are they my teachers?" the boy….Kenny? Asked.

"Yeah." The Doctor looked for an escape, "Sorry."

"Leave the Doctor alive." Finch ordered the other Krillitanes, "As for the others... you can feast." The Krillitanes swooped down on them. The Doctor grabbed a chair and tried to keep his companions safe, Rose and Sarah Jane screamed and ducked under nearby tables, Kenny following. Mickey was about to copy the Doctor's actions when Jordan pulled him down on to the floor.

"What the hell?!" Mickey yelled, Jordan just stared at where she had left Tory standing.

Tory was glowing; the soft eerie light of her Meridian Particles reflecting back at her from the walls and floor. She lifted a few centimetres off the ground. Her eyes were glowing even through her closed eyelids. The Krillitanes cried out and backed away to Finch's side.

"You will not touch what is mine." Her voice echoed around the room, making the bat-like creatures flinch in pain, "I have claimed this planet, and you dare to try and take it from me?!" Mr Finch stared at her.

"Such power." He whispered. Tory's eyes remained closed but her head tilted to the side as if she was looking for something. Jordan heard the door lock closest to her click open.

"Such…..illusions." Tory smirked opening her eyes to show them their normal TARDIS blue colour and dropped back to the floor with a thump, "K9! Keep them busy!"

**Yes Mistress! **

The robot dog responded as it rolled into the room through the door Tory had just opened.

"K9!" Sarah Jane cried out happily.

**Suggest you engage running mode, mistress.**

"Come on!" the Doctor shouted, tossing his chair to the side and running out of the room, followed by everyone else, Tory giggling madly.

The Doctor was waiting on the other side of the door, the second Tory passed through it he slammed it shut and locked it using the sonic.

"Just another day in the office." Tory winked, the Doctor rolled his eyes, grabbed her hand and ran off after the others.

)0(

They hid themselves in the Doctor's physics classroom, the Doctor paced up and down behind the teachers table, Tory sat herself on the desk, legs crossed while Kenny, Mickey and Rose all sat at the kids tables, Sarah Jane and Jordan preferred to stand.

"What was that?" Sarah Jane asked, "Back there." Tory looked up at her.

"I'm not exactly…..erm…pure Time Lord, I'm more part Time Lord, part human and part TARDIS." Sarah Jane just stared, "I call myself an HTL-TARDIS…..if that helps at all," her voice trailed off, "no?" Jordan shook her head and mouthed 'not helping'.

"So what did you do?" Sarah Jane dug.

"I er…in the simplest terms; I….erm used my TARDIS's half shields and created a force field around my body, it forced me off the ground and held me in the air, the silver light is called Meridian Particles and are my version of the power source that keeps the TARDIS running." The Doctor stopped pacing suddenly, bringing all attention back to him.

"It's the oil. Krillitane life forms can't handle the oil! That's it!" he cried, "They've changed the physiology so often, even their own oil is toxic to them. How much was there in the kitchens?"

"Barrels of it." Rose answered, jumping to her feet.

Everyone jerked to attention as the Krillitanes started to hammer on the door, their claws ripping holes in it.

"Okay," the Doctor started, "we need to get to the kitchens. Mickey..."

"What now," Mickey interrupted, holding his hands out to the sides in exasperation, "hold the coats?"

"Get all the children unplugged and out of the school." The Doctor ordered, "Now then, bats, bats, bats, how do we fight bats?"

Kenny walked towards the door, Tory was about to reach forward and grab him when he pulled the fire alarm. Outside the door the Krillitanes shrieked and screamed. The Doctor beamed, flung open the door and led the group past the writhing aliens and towards the kitchens.

"Why are we always running?" Jordan muttered as they all stopped in the kitchen, in front of five metal barrels all of them with corrosive warning stickers on the front.

"That is not safe to have in a school kitchen." Jordan muttered to Tory who snorted.

"Kenny, Rose, Sarah Jane," Tory grabbed their attention, "get out, use the back door!"

"Do it!" the Doctor ordered as they hesitated.

**Master! **K9 called as he drove into the room.

"Good boy." The Doctor praised.

"What are you planning?" Jordan demanded.

"If I can just…." The Doctor tried to sonic the barrels and growled in frustration, "They've been deadlock sealed!" he tried another and got the same result, "Finch must've done that. I can't open them."

**The vats would not withstand a direct hit from my laser. But my batteries are failing. **K9 commented.

"Right." He nodded, "Tory, Jordan out the same way as the others. K9 stay with me."

Jordan glanced at Tory who nodded. As Jordan left through the back door Tory walked up to the Doctor's side, he turned to face her.

"I thought I told you to-" he was cut off as Tory slammed her lips against his. She barely gave him time to respond before she was pulling away.

"Don't get dead!" she ordered before running out the door after Jordan.

The Doctor stared after her for a moment, his hands resting on empty air just above where her hips would have been.

**Master?**

The Doctor jumped, jolted out of his daze, before turning and going back to what he was doing.

)0(

"Did you kiss him?" Jordan asked the second the kitchen door closed behind Tory. Tory grinned before grabbing Jordan's hand, giving Sarah Jane, who was waiting for the Doctor and K9, a respectful nod and pulling Jordan away.

"We need to clear the blast zone." She explained.

"You so kissed hi….." a pause as Jordan registered Tory's words, "Blast zone?!" she repeated as a much louder and higher tone.

"Yes blast zone." Tory sighed.

"What are we walking for then?" Jordan started to jog towards the front of the school, "Hold the phone, what about Sarah Jane."

"The Doctor will get her." Tory noticed a crowd of kids leaving through the front door of the school and could hear the fire alarm in the distance.

"Come on, guys!" Mickey was yelling from the back of the crowd, "Let's go, let's go!" the kids cleared the school just as a running Sarah Jane and the Doctor cleared the side of the building. The school exploded. The kids cheered as did Mickey and Rose, Kenny moved into the crowd, probably looking for his friends. The Doctor comforted Sarah Jane at the loss of K9 while Jordan walked off a few steps and called U.N.I.T; they would handle clean up and making sure the kids were alright while Jordan was debriefed and Tory avoided the Major.

)0(

"Yo, was up!" Tory greeted a tried looking Jordan a few hours after U.N.I.T had taken over at the school. Jordan turned to her slowly and glared.

"The sky." She answered in a completely dead tone of voice. Tory blinked.

"Ha ha, you crack me up." Tory told her sarcastically.

"What do you want?" Jordan sighed, "I've got your paper work and mine to do and I really don't have the time to do either." Tory frowned.

"Can I help?"

"No." a pause, "Sorry, T, it's just that I still have nightmares about the last time I let you do paper work." Tory nodded in agreement.

"I'll just go then." Tory watched as Jordan turned back to her desk and restarted her work, "I'll see you at home."

"Yeah." Jordan agreed distractedly.

Tory sighed and flashed out of the building.

)0(

Tory sat on the couch in the flat and sighed. She didn't do well with boredom; she needed to be out there! Exploring, discovering, running; she was never happy just sitting around and waiting. But she didn't like traveling alone, the same way the Doctor didn't; that was why he always had companions. Tory would have asked Mickey but he had turned down Jordan's job offer as Sarah Jane, Rose and the Doctor wondered off just before U.N.I.T arrived at the school; he wanted to travel with Rose and that meant going with the Doctor. Tory understood, she really did, she was just lonely. Maybe she should travel with the Doctor…. Hold the phone, now there's an idea. Why shouldn't she travel with him? They were….something to each other why would he say no?

Tory jumped to her feet, grinning and ran into her room to pack.

)0(

Sarah Jane walked into the park that was home to the address she had found attached to her door in a TARDIS blue envelope and smiled as she caught site of the police box that had given the colour its name. She stopped outside of it and the door opened, revealing the Doctor, he stepped out and opened his mouth.

"Cuppa tea?" both of them spun in surprise to face Tory who was walking up from the opposite direction to the one Sarah Jane had used.

"That….That's my line!" the Doctor protested weakly as Tory winked at him and walked through the TARDIS doors. Sarah Jane was laughing as she followed.

"You've redecorated!" Sarah Jane laughed as she took in the inside of the TARDIS. Tory hugged Rose and shook Mickey's hand. The Doctor closed the TARDIS door and followed Sarah Jane up the ramp.

"Do you like it?" he asked excitedly.

"Oh, I, I do." She looked around again, "Yeah. I preferred it as it was, but uh... yeah. It'll do!"

"I love it." Rose spoke up.

"So does the TARDIS." Tory added as she flipped a few switches as the TARDIS asked her to. The Doctor joined her.

"Hey, you, what's forty seven times three hundred and sixty nine?" Sarah Jane asked Rose.

"No idea." Rose shrugged, "It's gone now, the oil's faded."

"But you're still clever." Sarah Jane reassured her, "More than a match for him." Rose smiled.

Tory slapped at the Doctor's hand as he tried to change some of the settings.

"You and me both." Rose answered.

Sarah Jane nodded. Rose glanced over at the Doctor like she was trying to prompt him to say something he almost missed it as he caught Tory around her waist and moved her away from the controls he wanted to leave off, namely the blue stabilisers.

"Doctor...?" Rose grinned as he and Tory looked around somewhat guilty.

"Um..." he paused, "we're about to head off, but...you could come with us." He offered.

Everyone looked at Sarah Jane expectantly. She looked from happy face to happy face and then shook her head.

"No..." she spoke softly, "I can't do this anymore." Tory grabbed the Doctors hand as the smile on his face fell slightly, "Besides," she continued enthusiastically, "I've got a much bigger adventure ahead! Time I stopped waiting for you and found a life of my own."

"Can I come?" Mickey asked suddenly. Sarah Jane stared in surprise while Rose frowned, "No, not with you," he reassured Sarah Jane quickly, "I mean... with you." He gestured towards the Doctor and Tory, "'Cause I'm not the tin dog. And I wanna see what's out there."

Tory grinned up at the Doctor while he studied Mickey, thinking.

"Oh, go on, Doctor." Sarah Jane encouraged, "Sarah Jane Smith, a Mickey Smith. You need a Smith on board!"

"Okay then," he agreed, "I could do with a laugh." Tory elbowed him.

"Rude." She muttered as he rubbed his side.

Mickey grinned and turned to Rose, she looked unhappy with this turn of events.

"Rose, is that okay?" Mickey asked.

"No, great." She answered sarcastically, "Why not?"

There was an awkward silence.

"I like the idea," Tory reassured Mickey, "In fact I might even come along." She wasn't looking at the Doctors face as she spoke and missed the ear splitting grin her statement had caused.

"Well," Sarah Jane was smiling again, "I'd better go." She walked over and took Rose by the arm, leading her to the side. Tory moved away from the Doctor and to the other side of the console where she beckoned Mickey to join her.

"Thanks." He whispered.

"You're welcome." She gestured at the console, "Wanna learn some of the basics?"

"Really?!"

"Really."

"Hell yeah!"

Tory laughed.

"Okay then, this here, the blue switches are the stabilisers; they stop the TARDIS from bouncing around all the time."

"Are they on?" Mickey sounded slightly concerned.

"No; the Doctor likes to keep them off." Tory flicked the switches on.

"Then why are you turning them on?"

"It may be his ship but it's designed to be flown by six people, he does it on his own with the breaks on the whole time."

"Ah." Mickey grinned, "What does this do?" The Doctor coughed drawing their attention.

"Do you mind?" Tory teased, "I'm teaching here."

"I thought you might like to say goodbye." The Doctor explained. Tory looked past him and towards the doors. Sarah Jane was standing and waiting for them.

"Indeed." Tory agreed and walked down the ramp, the Doctor following.

They walked out of the TARDIS, the Doctor closing the doors behind them so they could have some privacy.

"It's daft." Sarah Jane spoke up, "But I haven't ever thanked you for that time, and like I said, I wouldn't have missed it for the world."

"Something to tell the grandkids." The Doctor joked.

"Oh, I think it'll be someone else's grandkids now." Sarah Jane answered slightly wistful.

"Right." He looked very awkward, "Yes, sorry, I didn't get a chance to ask. You haven't... there hasn't been anyone...? You know...?" he rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"Well... there was this one guy. I travelled with him for a while. But he was a tough act to follow." She laughed and the Doctor smiled at her. Tory grinned at the two.

"You'll see him again Sarah Jane," Tory reassured her suddenly, "don't worry."

"But still," Sarah Jane paused, "Goodbye, Doctor."

"Oh, it's not goodbye..."

"Say it," she interrupted, "please. This time. Say it." He grinned at her and looked straight into her eyes as he spoke.

"Goodbye. My Sarah Jane." Tory stepped to the side as the Doctor threw his arms around Sarah Jane and lifted her into the air. He put her down before giving her one last smile and turning to the TARDIS door, he held out his hand to Tory and she took it, both of them making their way inside the TARDIS on their way to a brand new adventure.


	12. The Girl in the Fireplace

The Girl in the Fireplace

)0(

Me: Okay, anything in this chapter in _italics _is Tory's future. This is really hard to explain…erm the chapter is told from the normal point of view but Tory also comes in every now and then with the occasional piece that happens AFTER the actual episode. Does this make any sense?

Tory: The first part of the chapter is a good example of this, it's actually part of the episode that is never actually shown that then changes back to the beginning of the episode.

Me: really hoping this makes sense to you here…..

Timmy: they'll work it out. 

Me: hope so. 

)0(

_It was dark, but that was only to be expected in a time before the creation of the electric light. Tory sighed and looked up at the stars; she was standing at one of the many windows in the Palace of Versailles in the personal chambers of Reinette Poisson, the mistress to the King. _

"_Oh how far we fall." Tory whispered, resting her head against the window pain. _

"_I always did call you my angles." A rasping voice answered. Tory turned in surprise and headed towards the large bed in the centre of the room as fast as she could in all those skirts. _

"_Reinette! I thought you were sleeping!" Tory sat quickly on the side of the bed and grasped the limp hand Reinette no longer had the strength to move herself. _

_Reinette chuckled, the amused sound turning into a hacking cough part way through. Tory helped her sit up and supported her through the fit, handing her a glass of water once it was over. _

"_Thank you." Reinette spoke up as Tory put the water back on the side and moved away so Reinette could lie down once more, "You have given my letter to the King?" Reinette questioned once she had her breath back._

"_Yes," Tory reassured her, "he has the letter you wrote for him and the one you wrote for the Doctor." _

"_Good." Reinette closed her eyes again, "It will be good to rest without worry." _

_Tory closed her eyes as well but in her case it was not to rest but to hold in the tears. She had tried so very hard to convince Reinette to let Tory take her to a time where she could get help but Reinette said the sickness was god's wish and refused the help; Tory wasn't about to force her. _

_It was six years since the Doctor had last been seen; he was using a method of travel even less reliable than his own driving. Reinette was 43; much too young to die. _

_Tory hung her head as Reinette's breathing slowed and then stopped. She let a sob escape when Reinette's chest fell still. Tory stood slowly and placed one last kiss on the dead woman's forehead before walking out of the room. _

_The men standing guard on either side of the door interpreted her sombre look and hung their heads as they walked away to fetch the King. _

_Alone in the empty corridor Tory looked back at the room she had just left._

"_Goodbye, my friend." She whispered before vanishing in a flash of silver Meridian particles. _

)0(

Tory grinned as she and the Doctor darted around the console.

"Where do you fancy Mickey?" she asked as she darted past him, "The future? The Past? Alien planet?" Mickey grinned.

"I get to choose?"

"Of course!" Tory answered, "Rose got to choose her first flight, why shouldn't you?" Mickey took Rose's lack of argument as an agreement.

"Or," the Doctor spoke up, "we could set the controls to random."

"You choose." Tory finished, both of the Time Lords coming to a standstill in front of Mickey; waiting for his answer.

"Random." He decided.

"Off we go!" Tory cried out as she and the Doctor hit the button simultaneously.

)0(

The Doctor and Tory walked out of the TARDIS together, Tory stepping to the side and looking around while the Doctor walked further into the room they had landed in. Rose and Mickey walked out one after the other and studied the room as well.

It was dark and dusty, bits and pieces littering the floor with holes ripped in the walls exposing electronics.

"It's a spaceship!" Mickey announced excitedly, "Brilliant, I got a spaceship on my first go!"

"Looks kind of abandoned... Anyone on board?" Rose asked, looking between Tory and the Doctor.

"Nah, nothing here." The Doctor answered her, "Well! Nothing dangerous." He paused, "Well! Not that dangerous."

"Maybe you should do a scan?" Tory suggested as she pocketed one of the more interesting pieces off the floor.

"You know what," the Doctor continued, "I'll just have a quick scan... in case there's anything dangerous."

Rose and Tory smirked at each other as the Doctor moved over to a control panel in the centre of the room and, after throwing more damaged parts off it, started pressing buttons.

"So, what's the date?" Rose asked while the Doctor was distracted, "How far 'ave we gone?"

"About three thousand years into your future, give or take." He answered. Tory wandered over to the control panel and inserted whatever it was that she had picked up off the floor before flicking a switch. The lights turned on and the roof slowly retracted revealing the stars outside. "Fifty-first century. Diagmar Cluster, you're a long way from home, Mickey! Two and a half galaxies!"

Mickey moved over to a porthole and gazed out; Rose followed him and placed her hands on his shoulders, smiling.

Tory and the Doctor shared a grin at the young couple before turning back to the control panel. The Doctor looked unimpressed by the littering of damaged and broken technology while Tory ran her fingers over it like she was searching for something.

"Dear me, had some cowboys in here!" the Doctor exclaimed suddenly, "Got a ton of repair work going on." He was about to toss the things he was holding down when Tory shot him a glare, he grinned sheepishly and placed the pieces down gently making Tory smile at him. He grinned and looked down as something on the console grabbed his attention, "Now that's odd," he muttered. Rose and Mickey walked over and joined them, "look at that." he pointed at the screen, "All the warp engines are going... full capacity! There's enough power running through this ship to punch a hole in the universe... and we're not moving. So where's all that power going?" he tapped a few commands in but his search gave him nothing.

"Where'd all the crew go?" Rose asked, glancing around.

"Good question," Tory muttered, leaning in-between the Doctor and the console and twisting a few knobs, "No life signs on board, other than us obviously."

"Well, we're in deep space; they didn't just nip out for a quick fag." Rose pointed out.

"Nope," the Doctor answered, reading the results of the search over Tory's shoulder, "Tory checked all the smoking pods." There was a pause as they all glanced around the room. Rose was hiding a smile as the Doctor wrapped his arms around Tory's waist as she remained standing between him and the console.

"Can you smell that?" Tory asked suddenly; taking a deep breath through her nose.

"Yeah," Rose agreed, sniffing, "someone's cooking."

"Sunday roast, definitely!" Mickey added.

Tory frowned in thought.

"Who's cooking if no one's on board?" she asked.

"Could be automated." The Doctor suggested as he rested his chin on Tory's shoulder and used his right hand to fiddle with the console, leaving his left around her. He pressed down on a button and the wall beside the TARDIS opened up to show another room. The group of four walked through and stared in surprise; on the wall was a lit 18th century fireplace.

"Well," Tory smirked, "That's something you don't see every day."

The Doctor grinned at her.

"Eighteenth century! French!" the Doctor listed, "Nice mantel." He reached into his pocket and pulled out the sonic before pointing it at the fireplace and scanning it, "Not a hologram." He walked over, followed by Tory, and knelt to examine it while Mickey and Rose explored the rest of the room, "Not even a reproduction, this actually is an eighteenth century French fireplace. Double-sided, there's another room through there."

Rose looked disbelievingly through a porthole on the same side of the room as the fireplace.

"There can't be," she objected, "that's the outer hull of the ship, look."

The Doctor suddenly crouched down, dragging Tory with him. They were looking through the fireplace and into the room beyond and there, on the other side of the fire, was a young blonde girl dressed in a long white nightgown staring straight back at them.

"Hello!" the Doctor greeted her happily.

"Hello..." the girl returned, slightly hesitant.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Reinette." She answered.

"Reinette, that's a lovely name." he praised, "Can you tell me where you are at the moment, Reinette?"

"In my bedroom." She answered suspiciously.

"And where is that Reinette? Where do you live?" Tory asked gently.

"Paris, of course!" the girl answered as if it was obvious.

"Paris," the Doctor repeated, "right!"

"Monsieur, madam, what are you doing in my fireplace?" Reinette asked.

"Oh, it's just a routine... fire check." The Doctor answered earning an eye roll from Tory, "Can you tell me what year it is?"

"Of course I can!" Reinette answered, "Seventeen hundred and twenty seven."

"Right, lovely! One of my favourites..." the Doctor paused, "August is rubbish though. Stay indoors. Okay, that's all for now. Thanks for your help. Hope you enjoy the rest of the fire. Nice night!"

"Goodnight Monsieur, madam."

The Doctor and Tory stood both looking thoughtful.

"You said this was the fifty-first century." Mickey accused.

"He also said that the ship was generating enough power to punch a hole in the universe." Tory pointed out, "Say hi to the hole." She gestured at the fireplace.

"Must be a spatio-temporal hyperlink." The Doctor added.

"What's that?" Mickey asked.

"He has no idea," Tory teased, "he just doesn't wanna say 'magic door'."

"And on the other side of the _'_magic door'" Rose deepened her voice for the words, "is France in 1727?" the Doctor nodded and glanced at the fireplace before walking across the room, taking his coat off and flinging it in a corner of the room as he moved.

"Well, she was speaking French." The Doctor spoke, "Right period French, too."

"She was speaking English," Mickey protested, "I heard her!"

Rose draped her arms around Mickey's neck as the Doctor moved back towards the fireplace where Tory was running her hands over the wood.

"That's the TARDIS," Rose explained, "translates for ya."

"Even French?!"

"Yep." Rose confirmed happily.

The Doctor reached the fireplace just in time to trap Tory between it and him and activate the switch he had found earlier. The fireplace spun like a piece from an old fashioned horror movie, taking Tory and the Doctor with it.

"Gotcha!" he cried triumphantly.

"Doctor!" Rose yelled after them.

)0(

"A little warning would have been nice." Tory hissed as the fireplace stopped moving leaving them standing in a dark and shadowy room, Reinette was in the bed a short distance away and the sounds of the street could be heard from the direction of the window. Tory listened carefully, ignoring the ticking of the clock, as the Doctor made his way to the window.

"Now, where's the fun in that?" he asked as he pulled back the curtain, "Oh, come look at this." Tory walked over to him, avoiding the toys on the floor, and stared out the window, the Paris skyline stared back, covered in snow.

They heard a noise behind them making them spin around. It was Reinette. She was sitting up in bed and staring at them.

"It's okay!" the Doctor reassured her quickly, "Don't scream! It's us; it's the people from the fireplace. Look." He walked over to the candle beside her bed and lit is using the sonic letting Reinette see Tory and himself, "We were talking, just a moment ago. We were in your fireplace." He sounded very amused by this fact.

"Monsieur, that was weeks ago." Reinette protested, "That was months!"

"Really?" he asked, surprised, "Oh." He walked back towards the fireplace while Tory took a seat on the bed beside Reinette. The Doctor knocked on the mantel of the fireplace.

"Probably a lose connection." Tory spoke up, "It needs repairing."

"Who are you?" Reinette demanded, "And what are you doing here?" The Doctor didn't reply, seemingly hypnotised by the clock on the mantel.

Tory sighed and moved to sit cross-legged on the bed to face Reinette.

"I'm Tory and he's," she grinned suddenly, "the fireplace man."

"Okay, that's scary..." the Doctor interrupted.

"You're scared of a broken clock?" Reinette asked sceptically.

"Just a bit scared, yeah. Just a little tiny bit. 'Cause you see, if this clock's broken, and it's the only clock in the room..." he paused, turning to face Tory and Reinette, showing the two that the clock was clearly shattered. Tory concentrated and listened; she could still hear the ticking. "Then what's that?" the ticking grew louder. Reinette looked around the room, clearly scared. The Doctor didn't move, staring at Tory as he spoke slowly and quietly, "'Cause you see that's not a clock. You can tell by the resonance. Too big. Six feet, I'd say. Size of a man."

"What is it?" Reinette demanded, her voice shaking. Tory snapped out of her daze and opened her arms.

"Come here sweetheart." She offered. Reinette tossed her covers aside and gladly crawled into Tory's lap, enjoying the comfort.

The Doctor moved towards the curtains and checked behind them. Finding nothing he started speaking again quicker than before, "Now, let's think. If you were a thing that ticks and you were hiding in someone's bedroom, first thing you do: break the clock. No one notices the sound of one clock ticking, but two?" he paused and Tory took over.

"You'd start to wonder if you were really alone."

The Doctor nodded, confirming what Tory said, before moving towards the bed.

"Stay on the bed." He ordered as he crouched down by the edge, pulling out the sonic, "Right in the middle. Don't put your hands or feet over the edge."

Reinette pushed herself further into Tory's protective embrace as Tory tightened her grip.

"If you die," she warned the Doctor, "I'll kill you." He shot her a grin and a wink.

"I knew you cared." Tory rolled her eyes. He lowered his head again and held his arm under the bed. The moment the sound of the sonic reached Tory's ears the Doctor was pushed back roughly. Reinette gasped and Tory fought the urge to help him. The Doctor was back on his front in a moment and staring under the bed. Whatever he saw made him resume his crouch slowly, looking up at Reinette and Tory with wide eyes.

"Reinette," he whispered, "Don't look round."

"What is it?" Tory whispered back, holding Reinette as close as she could.

"You stay exactly where you are." The Doctor ordered. He stood up straight and stared over Tory and Reinette's heads before glancing back down at Reinette in confusion. "Hold still, let me look..." he bent down and grabbed Reinette's head between his hands, looking intently into her eyes and then glancing back at whatever was behind the two females, "You've been scanning her brain!" he cried shocked. Tory pulled Reinette's head from the Doctors hands and stared into her eyes herself.

Tory entered her mind slowly, searching for the same path that the 'thing' had used. It wasn't strong enough to follow but it was definitely there.

"What?! Why?" Tory turned, her anger overriding her surprise at seeing what looked like a man in a mask wearing proper clothing for the time period, "What on Earth could you find in a child's brain?!" she demanded.

Reinette lifted her head out of the shelter of the curve of Tory's neck and shoulder and glared at the 'man', not even flinching, Tory had never felt so proud.

"You want me?" Reinette questioned the creature. Its head twitched to the side as it answered her in a distinctly mechanical voice.

**Not yet. You are incomplete.**

""Incomplete"?" the Doctor repeated, "What's that mean, incomplete?" the droid didn't answer; it only continued to stare at Reinette. The Doctor glared and spoke in a firm but irritated voice as he lifted the sonic and waved it at the droid threateningly, "You can answer her, you can answer me. What do you mean, "incomplete"?"

The droid didn't answer. Suddenly it turned and started around the end of the bed in short, jerky but fast movements facing the Doctor. It held out its hand, a long menacing blade sliding out near the Doctor's face.

"Monsieur, be careful!" Reinette cried out. Tory got ready to jump to her feet but the Doctor waved her down.

"Just a nightmare, Reinette," the Doctor reassured her, "don't worry about it. Everyone has nightmares." The Doctor backed away quickly, the droid pursuing. It swiped at the Doctor who jumped back, reaching the fireplace. "Even monsters from under the bed have nightmares, don't you, monster?" the droid slashed out again. The Doctor jumped to the side and the droids blade hit the mantel, getting stuck.

"What do monsters have nightmares about?" Reinette asked. The Doctor pulled the switch and the fireplace started to turn.

"Him!" Tory grinned. Reinette smiled up at her as the Doctor and droid disappeared.

Tory placed Reinette gently back on the bed and stood.

"Are you leaving?" Reinette asked quietly.

"Oh sweetheart," Tory sighed kneeling beside the bed, "don't be scared, I promise I won't let the monsters get you."

"Swear?"

"Cross my hearts." Tory promised. The two girls smiled at each other. "Come on," Tory ordered, "into bed." Reinette did as she was told as Tory tuck her in placing the covers up to her chin.

"What if it comes back?" Reinette asked quietly.

"Then remember," Tory kissed her on the forehead, "Even monsters have nightmares."

Reinette giggled as Tory winked.

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight." Tory blew out the candle as Reinette closed her eyes and lay down. She backed away quietly and vanished in a flash of silver Meridian particles.

)0(

"Doctor!" Rose cried happily as she spotted the man reappearing as the fireplace turned. She was shocked when instead of Tory sharing the ride the Doctor had a male dressed in old fashioned French clothing that was somehow stuck to the fireplace by his hand.

"Allonz-y!" a voice behind them cried. Rose and Mickey turned to see a woman they didn't recognise holding some sort of weapon. She had; long black hair, tied back in a bun; the same TARDIS blue eyes as Tory; she had on a simple pair of black skinny jeans with matching black polo shirt; combat boots on her feet and a slightly large leather jacket on. She darted pasted them and sprayed the droid that had come through the fireplace with the Doctor, a white mist left the gun, solidifying on the figure and freezing it in place.

The woman sighed and placed the gun on the floor, leaning on it for support.

"Oh, that's the last time I regenerate and work I'm tellin' ya." She muttered in a light Northern accent.

"Excellent," Mickey exclaimed appreciatively, "ice gun!"

"Fire extinguisher." The woman corrected, tossing it to him, "Simple point and shoot." Mickey caught it and stared.

"Not to sound rude or nothing," Rose started, "but who are you?" the woman blinked.

"You don't recognise me?" she asked turning to Rose, "Interestin'." A pause, "Oh! I remember! I just regenerated!"

"Only Time Lords can regenerate." The Doctor spoke darkly.

"Yeah." The woman agreed. Before she could continue silver light filled the room and Tory arrived.

"I'm here don't panic!" she advised.

"Finally someone intelligent!" the unknown woman exclaimed. Tory spun to face her.

"Oh, you're not are you?" she asked looking the other woman up and down. The woman blinked.

"I could 'ave sworn I was never that rude." She muttered.

"What the hell is going on?" Rose demanded.

"I don't wanna regenerate!" Tory protested, ignoring Rose. The Doctor moved to her side and held her hand. The woman gave the pair a soft look.

"Neither did I." she answered.

"How did Jordan take it?" the Doctor asked suddenly.

"Wait," Rose spoke up, "You're Tory?" she asked the black haired woman who nodded.

Older Tory grinned suddenly and moved towards the Doctor. She grabbed him by his tie before he could move away and yanked his mouth to hers.

Younger Tory growled.

Older Tory pulled away and grinned.

"Yes it is possible." She answered an unasked question.

"What is?" Mickey asked.

"To be jealous of yourself." Older Tory answered with a smirk. The Doctor had a dazed look on his face. Younger Tory glared at her future self, "Tell me you wouldn't do the same thing!" Older Tory demanded. No answer. "Rude. Anyway, I'd better get back." She winked at the Doctor and waved to Rose and Mickey before activating her Meridian particles and vanishing.

Tory huffed, turning back to the Doctor who still had a slightly out of it look on his face. Tory scowled, grabbed him by his collar and snogged him. They separated when Mickey coughed awkwardly behind them. Tory blushed and the Doctor winked.

)0(

Me:…..*stunned shock*

Tory: Where'd she come from?! 

Me: I…..don't know…..

Timmy: You're the author!

Tory: Dino's right! You should bloody well know!

Me: I swear this story has a mind of its own!

Tory: when do I regenerate anyway?

Me: why would I tell you that?!

Tory: because you love me!...*silence*...I'll give you chocolate.

Timmy: Don't give in! Resist temptation!

Me: *rolls eyes* 

)0(

"I like jealous you." He muttered as he walked back towards the fireplace and the forgotten frozen droid. Tory gapped after him.

"Where did that thing come from?" Rose asked suddenly jerking her head at the droid.

"Here." The Doctor answered.

"So why is it dressed like that?" Mickey asked this time.

"Field trip to France, some kind of basic camouflage protocol; nice needlework!" the Doctor added, "Shame about the face." He reached up and pulled the wig of the head of the droid revealing a network of clogs and gears covered in a clear plastic egg shape, "Oh, you are beautiful!" he exclaimed in excitement.

Rose, Mickey and Tory all moved closer as the Doctor pulled out his glasses to examine the droid more carefully.

"No really, you are, you're gorgeous!" the Doctor continued, ignoring the movement behind him, "Look at that! Space age clockwork, I love it! I've got chills!" he grinned, turning to Tory to share his excitement. She grinned back, looking slightly lost but agreeing all the same; the clockwork was slightly beautiful. "Listen, seriously, I mean this from the heart, and, by the way, count those," he pointed at each heart as he spoke, "it would be a crime, it would be an act of vandalism, to disassemble you." He shot the droid one last wistful look before holding up the sonic, "But that won't stop me."

The droid creaked back into life and slammed its left hand down on its right wrist, teleporting away. Rose and Mickey looked around the room while the Doctor put the sonic back in his inside pocket. Tory frowned but didn't have the time to try and track it as the Doctor yanked her towards the fireplace again and got ready to press the lever to turn it.

"Short range teleport," the Doctor explained, "can't have got far; could still be on board."

"What is it?" Rose asked.

"Don't go looking for it!" the Doctor warned, pointing his finger at the humans.

"Where're you going?" Rose demanded.

"Back in a sec." he grinned and flipped the fireplace around, taking Tory with him.

Rose glanced around the room again and grabbed another of the fire extinguishers off the wall.

"He said not to look for it..." Mickey pointed out.

"Yeah, he did." Rose agreed, meeting his gaze for a few seconds before Mickey smiled and nodded, "Now you're getting it!" she laughed as they jogged out of the room.

)0(

It was daylight in Reinette's bedroom, that was the first thing Tory noticed when the fireplace stopped spinning, the second was that the room no longer looked like a little girl made it her home; the walls had being repainted into a light beige colour, the toys had been replaced by a harp and vanity desk and the bed was slightly larger.

The Doctor stepped away from the fireplace.

"Reinette..." he called out, "Just checking you're okay..." he idly brushed his hand along the strings of the harp, not noticing a young woman entering the room. She paused, obviously shocked at the two unknown people standing in her room. Tory waved at her from her spot leaning against the wall beside the fireplace. The woman stared, recognising the two, and cleared her throat making the Doctor jump and turn to face her. "Oh! Hello!" he spoke up looking surprised. Taking his glasses, which he had put on at some point, off and back into his pocket, "Um," he glanced back at Tory, "We were just looking for Reinette." He paused, "Uh, this is still her room, isn't it? We've been away, not sure how long."

"Reinette!" a woman called from outside the room, "We're ready to go!"

"Go to the carriage, mother," the woman, Reinette, "I will join you there." Called back. The Doctor and Tory shared a grin as they finally recognised her.

"It is customary, I think," Reinette spoke slightly teasingly, "to have an imaginary friend only during one's childhood. You are to be congratulated on your persistence."

"Reinette!" Tory walked towards the Doctor and stood beside him, "You've grown up!"

"And you do not appear to have aged a single day." Reinette returned as she walked towards the pair, "That is tremendously impolite of you."

"Right..." the Doctor stuttered, unsure how to react, "yes... sorry. Um... umm... umm…listen, lovely to catch up, but er, better be off, eh? Don't want your mother finding you up here with a strange man, do we?"

"Strange?" Reinette repeated, "How could you be a stranger to me? I have known you both since I was seven years old."

"Yeah... I suppose you have." He gave a small laugh, "We came the quick route." He explained. Reinette touched his cheek and then squeezed Tory's hand.

"Well, you seem to be flesh and blood, at any rate," she let go of the two and took a step back, "but this is absurd. Reason tells me you cannot be real."

"Oh," Tory grinned, "reason goes right out the window when you hang out with him." She jerked her head towards the Doctor.

"Hey!" he protested.

"Oh? You're saying that isn't true?" Tory teased turning to him.

"Well, no." he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, "Not when you put it like that."

"Exactly."

Reinette giggled.

"You talk like a married couple." Tory and the Doctor glanced at each other, Tory blushed and the Doctor grinned, wrapping and arm around her and pulling her close.

"Mademoiselle!" a male voice called, "Your mother grows impatient."

"A moment!" Reinette shouted back, annoyed by the interruption. "So many questions. So little time." She pulled the Doctor towards her and kissed him on the cheek before pulling Tory into a bone cracking hug. She rushed from the room grabbing something on the table as she passed before either Time Lord could react.

"Mademoiselle Poisson!" the male voice yelled again.

"Poisson?" the Doctor repeated.

"Reinette Poisson?" Tory muttered. A servant entered the room and stopped in shock at the sight of the two.

"No... no, no, no, no, no way, Reinette Poisson?!" the Doctor ran right up to the servant and spoke to him but not letting him answer any of his questions, "Later Madame Etioles? Later still mistress of Louis the Fifteenth, uncrowned Queen of France?" he ran back towards the fireplace grabbing Tory's hand as he passed her, "Actress, artist, musician, dancer, courtesan? Fantasti_c_ gardener!" he let out a happy laugh and Tory grinned at him.

"Who the hell are you two?!" the servant demanded, finally getting over his shock.

The Doctor reached behind him and Tory for the switch.

"I'm the Doctor." He grinned, "And I just became the imaginary friend of Madame de Pompadour!" he laughed and pulled the switch making the fireplace rotate.

They stepped out onto the ship together and looked around at the empty room.

"Rose!" the Doctor called, "Mickey?" he walked forward into the room, grabbing Tory by the hand as he moved, "Every time, _every_ time, it's rule one, don't wander off! I tell them, I do, rule one! There could be anything on this ship!" he ranted as they turned a corner and almost walking face first into a white horse. The Doctor and Tory stared as the horse whinnied at them.

"You have got to be kiddin' me." Tory gaped.

)0(

The Doctor and Tory walked through the corridors hand in hand searching for Rose and Mickey.

"Rose?" the Doctor called out, childlike. Tory looked back over her shoulder as the horse followed them down the corridor. They stopped walking and turned to face the horse. "Will you stop following us?" the Doctor asked irritably, "I'm not your mother!" the horse nosed him, making Tory giggle.

The Doctor moved away having spotted a set of white French double doors. Tory held out her hand to the horse making it lick her fingers.

"I'm going to call you Arthur." She stroked Arthur's ears and grinned.

"So this is where you came from, eh, horsey?" the Doctor asked as he opened to doors, Tory moved away from Arthur and followed the Doctor out into what had to be the grounds around the palace of Versailles.

They were standing behind a low wall and staring towards the palace and just in front of them Reinette was walking arm in arm with another woman. The Doctor smiled and grabbed Tory's hand before moving towards the wall and leaning on it, Tory by his side.

"Oh, Catherine," Reinette laughed, "you are too wicked!" Tory and the Doctor shared a smile when suddenly he pulled her down to the floor; hiding them from view.

"What're you doing?" Tory hissed.

"She was looking right at us." He explained, standing once more and then pulling Tory to her feet by the grip he still had on her hand.

"Oh, speaking of wicked, I hear Madame de Chateneux is ill and close to death." Catherine, Reinette's friend spoke up.

"Yes." Reinette agreed in a serious tone, "I am devastated." The two women tried to avoid each other's eyes but failed and started to laugh.

"Oh, indeed." Catherine continued still laughing; "I myself am frequently inconsolable." She became more serious, "The King will therefore be requiring a new mistress. You love the King, of course?"

"He is the King. And I love him with all my heart. And I look forward to meeting him." Catherine let out a laugh at Reinette's words but stopped as Reinette turned and stared behind them. Tory and the Doctor hidden from sight behind the wall once more.

"Is something wrong, my dear?" Catherine asked.

"Not wrong, no." there was a pause and then to two women joined arms once more and continued their walk, the Doctor and Tory straightened up and watched the pair leave before walking back into the ship; making sure to close and lock the doors behind them.

The Doctor finally gave up his manual search for Rose and Mickey when Tory threatened to ride away on Arthur and leave him alone, the trio had promptly stopped at the nearest monitor and done a scan for human life forms.

"Do the scan Doctor." Tory sighed as the Doctor pouted at her.

"But!"

"No buts! Or else me and Arthur are riding off."

"Arthur?" the Doctor asked, confused.

"Great name for a horse." She grinned at him.

The Doctor stared at her for a moment before shaking his head and returning to topic.

"But it's boring doing a scan!" he protested.

"Alright, look at it this way," she suggested as she walked towards him, "the faster we find Rose and Mickey the faster we find out whatever's happening and so the faster we get back to the TARDIS where we can spend some time….alone." by this point she was all but draped over his chest and running the fingers of her right hand over one of his sideburns while the left was running up and down his arm.

The Doctor smirked down at her.

"We're alone now." He pointed out; putting his hands on her hips and pulling her body flush against his.

"Arthur's here." Tory protested her hands moving to his shoulders to help her keep her balance. The Doctor looked over her shoulder at the horse for a moment before smirking down at her again, Tory realised why a moment later as the sound of retreating hooves reached her ears.

"Traitor." Tory muttered.

"Best mate." The Doctor corrected.

"Men," Tory sighed, "They're all the same no matter the species." The Doctor grinned at her before lowering his face the rest of the way and meeting her lips with his. Tory moaned into the kiss as the Doctor's lips expertly teased hers, convincing her to open her mouth to him before she even realised what she was doing. His hands started to travel; one ran up her side while the other buried itself into her hair. Tory moved her own hands to his suit jacket collar and used it to hold him in place against her.

The Doctor pulled away first making Tory rise onto her tiptoes to try and keep contact a whine of disappointment escaping when he moved too far back. The Doctor chuckled but pushed her back down using his reacquired grip on her hips.

Tory stared up at him while he stared down at her; liking the slightly swollen lips and flushed cheeks. The freshly snogged look looked good on HIS Tory. HIS…when did he start thinking about her like that?

"You gonna do that scan?" Tory asked slightly breathlessly.

"Wha…uh….yeah." he let go of her and backed up towards the console. Tory took a deep calming breath before stepping up beside him.

"You got them?"

"Yeah." He pointed at two flashing dots on the monitor.

"Let's go then." Tory turned to fetch Arthur but was pulled back into the Doctor's chest, "Hey!" she tried to protest when the Doctor kissed her again, he trailed the kissed along her cheek and up her jaw before reaching her ear and nipping the earlobe.

"Off we go then." The Doctor put his hands in his pockets and strode off, a proud grin on his face, "Come on Tory, Arthur!"

"I hate that man sometimes." Tory sighed before following the Doctor and Arthur towards Mickey and Rose.

)0(

They spotted the humans standing in front of another time-window, staring at whatever they could see inside. The Doctor wandered up behind them while Tory and Arthur followed a few steps behind him.

"Blimey, look at this guy." Mickey exclaimed as two servants and the King walked into sight, "Who does he think he is?"

"King of France." The Doctor answered.

"Oh, here's trouble." Rose greeted him, "What you been up to?"

"Oh, this and that." The Doctor answered as he stared through the window, "Became the imaginary friend of a future French aristocrat... picked a fight with a clockwork man..." Arthur chose that moment to whinny, "Oh, and we met a horse."

Tory walked into sight and waved as Arthur followed behind her.

"What's a horse doing on a spaceship?" Mickey asked incredulously.

"Mickey, what's pre-Revolutionary France doing on a spaceship?" the Doctor asked back, "Get a little perspective." The Doctor turned back to the window, Tory grabbing his hand as she stood next to him. "See these?" he gestured at the time-window with his and Tory's interlocked fingers, "They're all over the place. On every deck. Gateways to history. But not just any old history..." Reinette entered the room and moved towards the King.

"Hers," Tory took over pointing at Reinette, "These time-windows they're all along her timeline, this fifty-first century spaceship is stalking a woman from the eighteenth. But I guess the main question is why. Why her?"

"Who is she?" Rose asked watching as Reinette circled the king.

"Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson, known to her friends as Reinette." The Doctor answered, "One of the most accomplished women who ever lived."

"So has she got plans of being the Queen, then?" Rose checked.

"No, he's already got a Queen. She's got plans of being his mistress." The Doctor explained.

"Oh, I get it." Rose turned to Mickey, "Camilla." The two humans laughed.

The Doctor spoke up again as the King left the room.

"I think this is the night they met. The night of the Yew Tree ball. In no time at flat, she'll get herself established as his official mistress, with her own rooms at the palace... even her own title, Madame de Pompadour."

Reinette moved right in front of them and started fixing her hair in the mirror turned time-window.

"Queen must have loved her..." Rose commented.

"Oh, she did." The Doctor agreed missing the sarcasm, "They get on very well."

"The King's wife and the King's girlfriend?" Mickey asked.

"France." Tory shrugged, "It's a whole 'nother universe."

Suddenly The Doctor's grip on Tory's hand tightened.

"Can you hear that?" he asked sharply. His companions paused.

"Ticking." Tory muttered.

"But the clock!" Mickey protested, pointing to the instrument on the other side of the room, "It's broken!"

Before either Tory or the Doctor could explain Reinette spun around, recognising the ticking, and faced a figure in the shadows of the room, a figure everyone had failed to notice.

"How long have you been standing there?" she demanded, "Show yourself!" the figure turned to show itself as a 'female' clockwork droid and started to advance.

The Doctor grabbed the fire extinguisher from Mickey's hands and swung the mirror around, opening it so that the party of four could pass through.

"Hello, Reinette." He called as he ran passed her, "Hasn't time flown?"

"Fireplace man!" Reinette yelped in surprise, "Fireplace man's wife!" Tory blinked at the name just as the Doctor sprayed the droid, freezing it in place.

Tory was thankful that he didn't seem to hear what Reinette had said but couldn't deny that the idea of being the Doctor's wife made her feel very…odd.

The Doctor tossed the extinguisher back to Mickey and the droid started to click and whirr loudly.

"What's it doing?" Mickey questioned.

"Switching back on." The Doctor explained, "Melting the ice."

"And then what?"

"Then it kills everyone in the room." The droid's arm shot out, aimed towards the Doctor's throat, Tory pulled him backwards by the bottom of his jacket, her eyes glowing silver. The Doctor looked at her for a moment before gently loosening the fingers attached to his clothes and continuing, "Focuses the mind, doesn't it?" he turned and faced the droid, clearly talking to it, "Who are you? Identify yourself."

The droid cocked its head but didn't answer.

"Order it to answer him." Tory suggested to Reinette, her eyes back to their normal TARDIS blue but with faint lines of silver going through the iris.

"Why should it listen to me?" Reinette questioned.

"It did when you were a child," Tory explained, "There's no reason for that to have changed." Reinette nodded and took a step forward.

"Answer his question." She ordered, "Answer any and all questions put to you."

The droid remained still for a moment before lowering its arm.

**I am repair droid seven.**

"So what happened to the ship, then?" the Doctor questioned, "There was a lot of damage."

**Ion storm, eighty two percent systems failure.**

"That ship hasn't moved in over a year." The Doctor pointed out, "What's taken you so long?"

**We did not have the parts.**

Mickey laughed.

"Always comes down to that, doesn't it?" he grinned, "The parts."

"What's happened to the crew," Tory asked, "where are they?"

**We did not have the parts.**

"There should have been over fifty people on your ship." The Doctor continued, "Where did they go? Fifty people don't just disappear!" he argued, "Where...?" he stopped suddenly a horrified look crossing his features.

"Oh my God." Tory muttered, "They didn't have the parts." Her voice faltered causing Reinette to move to her and wrap an arm around her shoulders.

"The crew?" Mickey asked a disgusted look on his face.

"We found a camera with an eye in it..." Rose offered hesitantly, "and there was a heart... wired in to machinery."

"It was just what it was programmed to." The Doctor explained, "Repairing the ship any way it can, with whatever it could find. No-one told it the crew weren't on the menu. What did you say the flight deck smelt of?"

"Someone cooking..." Rose answered quietly.

"Flesh plus heat." The Doctor spoke grimly, "Barbeque."

Reinette and Rose had matching looks of sickness while Mickey still seemed to be trying to process what he had just been told, Tory was just staring at the droid her eyes slowly taking on a glowing silver.

"But what are you doing here?" the Doctor continued, "You've opened up time windows, that takes colossal energy. Why come here, you could have gone to your repair yard. Instead you come to eighteenth century France? Why?"

**One more part is required.** Its head jerked to face Reinette who grabbed Tory's hand for reassurance as the Doctor, Rose and Mickey turned to stare at her. The Doctor turned back to the droid.

"Then why haven't you taken it?"

**She is incomplete.**

"What?!" Tory demanded, squeezing Reinette's hand, "That's your plan? Just keep opening these time-windows until you find her complete?!"

"Why her?" Rose asked abruptly, making everyone turn to her in surprise, "You've got all of history to choose from, why specifically her?"

**We are the same.**

"We are not the same," Reinette shouted, "we are in no sense the same!"

**We are the same.**

Reinette let go of Tory's hand as she advanced towards the droid.

"Get out of here!" she ordered, "Get out of here this instance!"

"Reinette, no!" the Doctor protested too late as the droid followed the order and activated its teleport. "It's back on the ship. Rose, take Mickey and Arthur, get after it. Follow it, don't approach it, just watch what it does."

"Arthur?"

"Good name for a horse." The Doctor answered with a wink in Tory's direction.

"No, you're not keeping the horse!" Rose told him exasperatedly.

"I let you keep Mickey!" The Doctor retorted, "Now go, go, go!"

Rose and Mickey ran back through the mirror time-window and the Doctor pushed it shut behind them before turning back to Reinette and Tory who were standing in the centre of the room.

"Reinette," he spoke seriously, "you're going to have to trust me. I need to find out what they're looking for, there's only one way I can do that. Won't hurt a bit." Tory backed away as the Doctor walked towards Reinette. She nodded and the Doctor placed his fingers on her temples and closed his eyes, Reinette copied his actions.

"Fireplace man..." Reinette spoke up in amazement, "you are inside my mind."

"Oh dear, Reinette." He whispered, "You've had some cowboys in here."

"You are in my memories." Reinette muttered, stunned, "You walk among them. Can you both do this?"

"Yeah." Tory answered.

"If there's anything you don't want me to see, just imagine a door and close it. I won't look." He reassured her, "Ooh….actually... there's a door just there." Reinette opened her eyes and grinned slyly, "You might want to clo... Ooh.Actually, several."

"To walk among the memories of another living soul... do you ever get used to this?" Reinette questioned.

"I don't make a habit of it." He answered.

"How can you resist?"

"What age are you?" the Doctor asked suddenly either ignoring or not hearing Reinette's second question.

"So impertinent a question so early in the conversation. How promising." Reinette teased, "I hope you don't treat Tory this way." Tory grinned as the Doctor paused, mouth open, before continuing.

"No, not my question, theirs." He explained, "You're twenty-three and for some reason, that means you're not old enough." Reinette flinched making Tory step towards her, "Sorry," the Doctor hurriedly apologised, "you might find old memories reawakening. Side effect."

"Oh, such a lonely childhood..." Reinette muttered.

"It'll pass." Tory comforted her, "Stay with us."

"Oh, Doctor. So lonely. So very, very alone."

"What do you mean, alone?" the Doctor asked her,_ "_You've never been alone in your life..." his eyes snapped open as he realised something, "When did you start calling me "Doctor"?"

"Such a lonely little boy." Reinette continued, "Lonely then but lonely no longer." She opened her eyes and smiled at both Time Lords.

"How did you do that?" the Doctor asked as he stepped away.

"A door, once opened, can be stepped through in either direction..." the Doctor and Tory stared at her, "Oh, Doctor, Tory," she stepped towards them, "My lonely Time Lords. Dance with me."

"We can't." The Doctor answered warningly.

"Dance with me." Reinette demanded, walking to Tory and taking her hand before walking back towards the Doctor.

"This is the night you dance with the King." The Doctor explained.

"Then first, I shall make him jealous."

"We can't." The Doctor repeated.

"Doctor... Doctor who?" Reinette asked sadly, staring for a few moments, "It's more than just a secret, isn't it?"

"What did you see?"

"That there comes a time, Time Lord_,_" Reinette answered,"when every lonely little boy must learn how to dance." Tory held out her other hand and the Doctor took it, "And every little girl must learn how to love." Reinette lead them away.

)0(

"I have no dress for you," Reinette spoke as they walked, "you will have to make up an excuse for your state of dress."

"I can take care of that just tell me what you need me to wear."

"It is a masquerade." Reinette grinned, "I have the Doctor's mask here." She opened a small purse and pulled out a large back feathered mask, "There will be clothes for you in here." She pointed towards another door and had shoved the Doctor through before he could protest.

Tory and Reinette shared a grin before the French woman waved her hand in a hurry up motion looking at Tory expectantly.

"Oh, right." Tory closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on what she assumed was the height of fashion from what Reinette was wearing; long floor length skirt, delicate patterns sewn onto the fabric, matching colours in slightly different shades, a deep red colour would probably look good Tory mussed as the dress appeared in her minds eyes with matching half-face velvet mask.

"What magic is this?" Reinette questioned once Tory opened her eyes, the cause of the question; Tory wearing the exact dress she had being picturing in her head.

"No magic, it's an illusion." Tory explained, "Look," she grabbed Reinette's hand and passed it through the layers of skirts, the image shifted and scattered around her hand allowing it through to touch the jeans underneath, "It's an image that I'm generating using my variation of a TARDIS chameleon circuit it takes a lot of energy...and you have no idea what I just said do you?" Reinette shook her head, a soft amused smile on her face, "Never mind then." Tory shrugged and pulled on her mask.

"Follow this hallway to the ballroom," Reinette ordered, "I will follow with the Doctor."

The two women shared a smile before Tory gave Reinette a two fingered salute and walked off.

Tory entered the room and stared around, one thing she could say about the French they knew how to party! The room was massive, the ceilings, walls and floors all covered in carved details, paintings and statues, the guests were all mingling around the corners of the room while the dancers and the band took the centre.

"It's beautiful." Tory muttered as she stepped out into the crowd. She walked around the edge of the dance floor, trying to keep an eye on the dancers and the door at the same time so as not to bump into anyone and failing rather tragically; she lost sight of the doorway as one of the male French aristocrats stepped into her line of sight.

"Good day, Madam," he greeted her with a bow. Tory returned the gesture with a distracted curtsy as she tried to continue watching the door, "May I have this dance?" the man asked, not noticing Tory's uninterested air, he held out his hand and Tory, left with no choice in the matter, took it. He led her out to the dance floor, close to the centre and bowing once more as the music started.

As they danced Tory's eyes kept darting around trying to find the Doctor or Reinette, her dancing partner was less than enthused by this behaviour.

"Have I taken you from your partner?" he questioned in an annoyed tone.

"No," Tory answered, stopping herself from looking around and glancing up and his face, "I'm looking for a friend."

"If they were foolish enough to leave such a beauty as you unattended then they do not deserve you." He answered.

The music changed to slightly more fast paced beat and Tory's partner was force to let her go as the dance changed to one with revolving partners. Tory passed into arms she was much happier in.

"Doctor," she sighed in relief, "I was looking for you."

"I saw." He answered, amusement clear in his tone as he noticed the annoyed look Tory's pervious partner was giving them as the Doctor led her from the dance floor; unwilling to have their conversation interrupted by the changing of partners.

Once they were standing still, slightly away from the jostling of the crowds, Tory looked the Doctor up and down and snorted.

"I thought Reinette told you to get changed." She pointed out as the Doctor was standing before her in the same brown suit as always.

"Did she?" he asked, pretending confusion, "I must have miss heard."

"Sure, whatever you say." Tory agreed with a roll of her eyes as she grabbed a glass of something from a nearby table and took a sip.

"You look brilliant." He complimented her.

"Thank you," Tory grinned at him, "It's just an illusion though."

"A shame." he answered, stealing Tory's drink and taking a sip before promptly spitting it back into the glass.

"Thanks for that." Tory told him sarcastically as she took the glass back and placed it back on the table.

"That's rubbish!" The Doctor exclaimed loud enough for the nearby staff to hear, "What is that?!"

"Wine I'd imagine." Tory answered as the staff glared at the Doctor.

"I hate wine." He muttered, "I want something fruity."

"Fruity?" Tory repeated.

"Yeah," his face lit up as he had an idea, "I know what we'll do." He grabbed her hand and led her off towards the food tables with the fruits on them; he grabbed a lime and a cherry before moving to the drinks table where he gathered rum and some sort of orange flavouring and a pot of sugar from the end of the table. "Here we go!" he put his spoils down on a new, smaller, table one of the staff had delivered after a hand signal from the Doctor.

"What are you doing?" Tory asked as the Doctor pulled some sort of alien blender from one of his pockets and set it down on the table as well. He dug around in his pocket again and pulled out a banana.

"Always bring a banana to a party." He muttered with a grin, "Making myself a drink." The Doctor answered as he set to work; he squeezed the juice out of the lime and into the blender quickly followed by the orange flavouring, rum, banana and sugar, leaving the cherry and two glasses off to the side, he had some ice from somewhere and poured that in as well before activating the device.

His and Tory's antics had managed to attract a small crowd by that point, all of them seeing the pair as someone's hired entertainment.

"Ah-ha!" the Doctor cried as the blender dinged, he grabbed it and poured it into two glasses, the slushy liquid a pleasing yellow colour, he placed the cherry in one glass and handed the one without to Tory, "Go on," he encouraged, "drink up."

Tory gave the glass a distrustful glance before shrugging and taking a sip.

"Well?" the Doctor demanded, excited to see Tory's reaction to one of his most favourite drinks.

"It's actually rather good." Tory answered in surprise.

"Always the tone of shock." the Doctor teased and he drank his own drink before pouring whatever was left in the blender into various empty glasses on the table, "banana daiquiri's for everybody!"

)0(

Tory, tired after giving the guests a musical performance using a set of Zeus plugs as castanets, lent against the wall as she relaxed, looking over the room. Reinette had gotten the interest of the King and was soon to be invited to live in the place from the looks of things and the Doctor….Tory giggled as she watched the Doctor escape the clutches of yet another French aristocrat, female this time, as she tried to convince the Doctor to dance with her, he used the excuse of being taken and, after shaking off his fan club, moved to stand at Tory's side.

Tory, slightly tipsy as she was, grinned up at him.

"Ah, the French." She sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder.

They watched Reinette dancing with the King in silence for a moment before the Doctor wrapped his arms around Tory and turned her to face him.

"This is fun," Tory told him simply, "we should do this again sometime."

"For you," he answered, "anything."

"Oh really?" Tory flirted. The Doctor recognised her tone and smirked.

"Anything particular in mind?" he flirted back.

"I could probably think of a few things, if pressed."

The Doctor pushed her slightly and moved them back into a shadowed portion of the room, pining Tory against the wall. The Doctor lowered his head fully and pulled Tory into a gentle kiss. Tory hummed in pleasure when the broke apart.

"Let's definitely do this again." She tilted her head back as the Doctor started kissing her neck. The Doctor chuckled and pulled his head back prompting Tory to start kissing his jaw, undoing his tie and top buttons as she worked her way to his neck.

"I see no problems with that." he groaned as Tory sucked on the skin just above his jugular vein. Tory giggled and nuzzled his chin.

"Neither do I."

The Doctor shot her a roguish grin before his hands, which had being tamely on her hips, slipped down to her thighs and lifted her into the air, her legs wrapped around his waist on reflex as a surprise noise escaped her, the shock making her dress disappear leaving her in her 21st century clothes once more.

"Cheeky bugger." Tory teased as the Doctor started kissing her neck again, using the wall to help hold her weight as his hands started to roam; one going to squeeze her arse while the other went to the back of her neck.

"You wouldn't have me any other way." He answered before kissing her again, he mouth opened to him readily as he licked her top lip before biting and pulling the bottom. Not to be outdone Tory let her tongue out and into his mouth, stroking along his own and across the top of his mouth. The Doctor and Tory both moaned and linked one of their hands together, interlocking the fingers, to open a weak mental link. Both gasped as the singular pleasure they were both feeling became one massive wave that rose and crashed back over them.

They stared into each other's eyes for a moment before grabbing for one another again, hands, lips, teeth and tongue; they just couldn't stop touching each other, the hands creating the link broke apart and the link closed, a faint echo remaining in the back of their minds.

Tory's shirt was undone and hanging off her shoulders as the Doctor kissed across the tops of her breasts, her hand buried in his hair.

"We…..we have to stop." Tory gasped, pulling the Doctors head away from her body.

"No we don't" he contradicted.

"Yes, we do." He stopped trying to kiss her and rested his forehead against hers, "Why?" he asked, sounding slightly hurt.

"I'm not having my first time with you against a wall." Tory answered bluntly, "And it's my first time in this body."

"Oh." He realised what she meant and lowered her gently to the floor, wrapping his arms around her waist, "You've never?"

"Not in this body." She answered, slightly embarrassed, "Physically I'm a virgin."

"So you erm… 'knocked boots' in your last body?"

"I was a fully grown woman Doctor," she defended, "And I hadn't even met you yet."

"I'm not accusing you of anything," he hesitantly explained, "I just wanted to know so I could make it as good as possible when we do…. do it."

Tory smiled at him.

"Thank you."

_TORY!_ A female voice demanded echoing in her head,_ THE YELLOW ONE AND HER MATE ARE IN DANGER! _

The Doctor and Tory shared a look, the Doctor recognising the distant look on her face as the one from when the TARDIS communicated with her, before darting from the room and back towards the time-window.

)0(

The Doctor and Tory spun into the room where Rose and Mickey were being held by the robot droids drunkenly. The Doctor's tie was around his head and he had sunglasses on, Tory's hair was ruffled and sticking up in all directions she had a glass in each hand that had what looked like wine inside of them; the Doctors hands where on Tory's waist as they danced and she held her arms out to the side in an effort to prevent the liquid in the glasses spilling onto his or her own clothes.

"And still have begged for moooore..." the Doctor sang, "I could've spread my wings and done a thou..." he stopped spotting the other people in the room, "have you metthe French?" he demanded, Mickey stared up at the two aliens bemused, "My... god, they know how to party."

"Oh, look at what the cat dragged in." Rose spoke up sarcastically, "The Oncoming Storm."

"Oh, you sound just like your mother." The Doctor told her distastefully as he let go of Tory, who continued to dance with an imaginary partner, and lent against the bed Rose was tied to.

"What've you been doing?" Rose demanded crossly, "Where've you been?!"

"Well... among other things, I thinkjust invented the banana daiquiri a few centuries early." Rose flopped back down on to the table, exasperated, "Do you know, they've never even seen a banana before!" he leaned over her, "Always take a banana to a party, Rose." He told her sincerely, "Bananas are good." The Doctor finally seemed to see the droids through his drunken haze as Tory stopped dancing and wobbled over to his side, "Oh hohohoho, brilliant." He sounded absolutely delighted, "It's you!" he pointed at a droid in blue, the first one they had ever met in Reinette's childhood bedroom, "You're my favourite, you are, you are the best! Do you know why? 'Cause you're so thick_. _You're Mister Thick ThickThickity Thick Face from Thicktown, Thickania."

"And so's your dad!" Tory added, getting an approving nod for the Doctor as he strolled towards the droid, leaving Tory standing beside Rose.

"Do you know what they were scanning Reinette's brain for?" he sniggered, "Her milometer. They wanna know how old she is. Know why? 'Cause this ship is thirty-seven years old. And they think that when Reinetteis thirty-seven, when she's "complete", then her brain will be compatible. So, that's what you're missing, isn't it?" he stared the droid mockingly in the face. "Hmm? Command circuit. Your computer. Your ship needs a brain. And for some reason, God knows what, only the brain of Madame de Pompadour will do."

**The brain is compatible.**

"Compatible?" He repeated as Tory walked to his side and handed him his glass of wine, "If you believe that, you probably believe this is a glass of wine." He removed the droid's mask and poured the liquid over the clockwork inside; he replaced the mask and patted the head as the droid's clicking got slower before finally stopping making the machine tilt its upper body forwards. "Multigrain anti-oil." The Doctor explained, suddenly sober, "If it moves, it doesn't."

The rest of the droids in the room started to move forwards but Tory took care of them by releasing a flash of Meridian particles, aimed at the console to the side of the room, they condensed into the shape of a hand and pulled a leaver, deactivating all of the droids.

The Doctor pulled out the sonic, as Tory took a sip from the glass she still had in her hand, and aimed it at the two beds.

"Right, you two, that's enough lying about..." he released to two humans and they slid down the tables and onto the floor, "Time we got the rest of the ship turned off."

"Are those things safe?" Mickey asked as he edged around one of the droids to join Rose and the Doctor at the console while Tory finished whatever was in her glass.

The Doctor pulled his tie down and around his neck and pushed his sunglasses up into his hair.

"Yep. Safe." The Doctor confirmed, "Safe and thick. Way I like them. Okay, all the time windows are controlled from here. I need to close them all down." He felt around in his pockets, "Zeus plugs." He muttered, "Where are my Zeus plugs?" he looked around like he thought they had fallen out of his pocket, "I had them a minute ago; Tory was using them as castanets."

"Why didn't they just open a time window to when she was thirty-seven?" Rose asked.

"With the amount of damage to these circuits, they'll be lucky to hit the right century. Trial and error after that." The Doctor answered as he fiddled with the computer, "The windows aren't closing. Why won't they close?"

An ominous pinging sound rang around the room.

"What's that?" Rose asked. The clicking noises continued, Tory tilted her head to the side as her TARDIS side tried to translate the computer code into something understandable.

"I don't know..." the Doctor spoke over the noise,"incoming message?"

"From who?" Mickey questioned.

"Report from the field... one of them must still be out there with Reinette!" the Doctor realised, "That'swhy I can't close the windows, there's an override!" The droid the Doctor had taken out with the 'wine' straightened and expelled the liquid all over the Doctor's shoe, "Well, that was a bit clever." The rest of the droids reactivated, filling the room with ticking, Tory backed up to stand in front of the Doctor, Mickey and Rose Meridian Particles dancing around her hands, ready to be released. "Right... many things about this are not good."

"Ya think?!" Tory answered him as the pinging repeated itself.

"Message from one of your little friends?" the Doctor questioned the droids, "Anything interesting?"

**She is complete. It begins. **

They all activated their teleports and vanished.

"What's happening?" Rose demanded.

"One of them must've found the right time window," the Doctor and Tory darted back to the console and started to track the teleport signal, "and now it's time to send in the troops. And this time they're bringing back her head."

)0(

"Reinette?" Tory asked quietly as she spotted the other woman standing in the corridor of the ship, Rose and Mickey behind her. Reinette turned to Tory a lost and scared look on her face, "Come here." Tory ordered opening her arms, Reinette darted into the hug, thankful for the reassurance offered.

"So, this is your world." Reinette spoke as the two women separated. Suddenly faint screaming rang around the ship, "What was that?"

"The time window," Mickey explained, "the Doctor fixed an audio link."

"Those screams... is that my future?" Reinette asked, scared of the answer but still willing to hear it.

"I'm so sorry." Tory squeezed her hands making Reinette give a sad smile.

"Then I must take the slower path." Reinette spoke.

"Are you there?" Reinette's voice spoke up but not from the woman holding Tory's hand, "Can you hear me? I need you now, you promised. The clock on the mantel is broken. It is time."

"That's my voice." Reinette pointed out sounding disturbed and hoping for an explanation.

"Rose," Mickey tried to attract her attention, Tory glanced over at him in surprise having not noticing him before, "come on, we've gotta go. There's... there's a problem."

"Give me a moment." Rose told him. He shot her a glance and hurried away while Rose stepped up to Reinette's other side, "Are you okay?"

"No." Reinette answered, "I'm very afraid. But you and I both know, don't we, Rose? The Doctor and his Tory are worth the monsters." Rose nodded.

Reinette dropped Tory's hand and walked back to the tapestry that had to be the time-window she had used to get onto the ship.

"Rose," Tory followed Reinette through the tapestry, "tell him not to be late."

Rose stared at the closed portal for a moment before turning and walking back to the bridge; it would be mere minutes for the Doctor but nearly five years for Tory before they saw each other again.

)0(

Five years passed slowly for Tory and Reinette, they were constantly on watch for more droids but they seemed to have vanished, Tory explained it one night as them all being called to the right time-window.

Reinette had looked relived for a moment before realising just what that meant for her future.

"The Doctor will be there." Tory reassured her, "You can't have the monsters without the Doctor."

"I hope you are right."

Tory held Reinette in the night when her nightmares were too much, they never talked about it and Reinette returned the favour when Tory's TARDIS and Time Lord sides refused to settle and she had to travel, even a small distance. Tory showed Reinette more of France than Reinette had ever seen before but only ever in the one time. She never took her off planet either; worried that without the natural enhancements the TARDIS made to anyone's immune system she would fall ill.

Five years was a long wait but Tory discovered one thing in that she had never really thought was true; distance really does make the heart grow fonder. She missed the Doctor more than she ever thought possible, when she saw that Time Lord again she was going to snog him senseless! The idea made Tory giggle as she placed the last part of her hair into the elaborate up style Reinette had insisted she wear tonight for whatever ball the King was throwing; the man threw so many Tory had stopped keeping track of what they were for.

Tory sighed and stood; giving a nod to the maid she passed as she left the bedroom that had been hers for the last five years. Tory walked towards Reinette's rooms slowly, she was already late for the ball and would have preferred not to have to go entirely but her Meridian Particles were acting up again and she needed to waste the energy they gave her before she overloaded.

She stopped in her tracks when she heard the sound of screaming echoing around the castle.

Tory lifted her skirts in on hand and ran towards Reinette's rooms; she's be damned if she let those droids touch Reinette without going through her first.

Tory burst in through the doors, spotting Reinette by the fireplace she'd had moved from her house and the King standing be her shoulder.

"We are under attack!" he exclaimed, "There are creatures... I don't even think they're human. We can't stop them."

"The clock is broken." Reinette spoke, "He's coming." The King moved towards her, concerned that she wasn't trying to run.

"Did you hear what I said?" he took her hand pulling her away from the fireplace. She stopped him from moving and stared up at him, trying to make him listen.

"Listen to me." She insisted, "There is a man coming to Versailles. He has watched over me my whole life and he will not desert me tonight." She glanced at Tory over her shoulder before the King took her attention again.

"What are you talking about?" he demanded, "What man?"

"The only man, save you, I have ever loved." Reinette continued before the King could interrupt, "No, don't look like that, there's no time. You have your duties. I am your mistress. Go to your queen." She went back to the fireplace, kneeling in front of it and speaking into the flames urgently, "Are you there? Can you hear me? We need you now, you promised. The clock on the mantel is broken. It is time. Doctor! Doctor!"

"We must go." The King insisted, "No one is coming to help us."

"He always comes!" Tory snapped, forgetting herself, as she moved to Reinette's side and placing a hand on her shoulder. There was silence as the trio waited for a miracle. A silence broken only by the mechanical ticking of one of the droids standing in the doorway.

Reinette stood and turned to face her childhood tormentor. Tory could almost see the flashbacks the droid was causing in her and grabbed her hand.

"It's only a monster Reinette," Tory whispered as two more droids joined the first, "even monsters have nightmares." Reinette smiled at the happier memory even as the droids moved into the room.

**You are complete. You will come.**

They moved forward, one droid for each person in the room.

Tory raised her hands, they were starting to glow silver when Reinette shook her head. Tory stared for a moment before lowering her hands again and letting one of the droids take her arm and pull her roughly from the room.

"Where are we going?" Reinette demanded as the droids dragged her down a corridor, Tory and the King behind her.

**The teleport has limited range. We must have proximity to the time portal.**

"Your words mean nothing." Reinette spat, "You are nothing."

They were getting closer to the main ballroom, probably the source of all the screaming now Tory thought about it.

They entered the ballroom to find the Kings guests all huddled in corners, kept there by guarding droids. The noise made by the screaming was close to deafening in the echo-y room.

Reinette yanked herself free of her guards and stepped forward proudly.

"Can everyone just calm down?" she shouted over the noise, "Please." The guests fell silent and Reinette continued in her normal tone, "Such a commotion. Such distressing noise. Kindly remember that this is Versailles. This is the Royal Court. And we are French." She turned to a droid, the first one she had ever met, "I have made a decision. And my decision is "no", I shall not be going with you today. I have seen your world, and I have no desire to set foot there again."

**We do not require your feet.**

Two droids moved to either side of her and pushed her to the floor, holding her there. One held a blade to her throat while the other had needles. The droid Reinette had spoken to stepped forwards and held out his own blade, Reinette stared up at him defiantly.

"No!" Tory screamed, the King struggling behind her, "You'll have to kill me first!" The droid holding her back released its blade and held it to her throat.

"You think I fear you." Reinette spoke up, trying to draw the droids attention, "But I do not fear you, even now. You are merely the nightmare of my childhood. The monster from under my bed. And if my nightmare can return to plague _me, _then rest assured," Reinette lowered her voice to a whisper, "so will yours."

In the distance they heard the sound of a horse whinnying.

There was a stupefied pause.

The King darted forwards and pulled Tory out of the threatening grip of the droid and into the safety of his own arms.

Galloping hooves could be heard now, getting louder as they apparently got closer, after a few moments the giant mirror at the front of the room shattered as Arthur the horse charged through, the Doctor on his back.

Everyone stared as the Doctor trotted into the centre of the room where Tory, Reinette, the King and the droids where. The Doctor winked at Reinette as he passed her and shot a possessive glare at the King who still had Tory wrapped in his arms.

"Madame de Pompadour. You look younger every day." The Doctor greeted making Reinette smile.

"What the hell is going on?" the King demanded, still not letting go of Tory.

"Oh," Reinette looked back to the Doctor, "this is my lover," she introduced, "the King of France."

"Yeah?" he muttered disdainfully still eyeing the grip the other man had on Tory, "Well, I'm the Lord of Time." The King let go of Tory like she'd burned him as the Doctor shot him one more glare before turning to the first droid, "And I'm here to fix the clock." He pulled the mask of the droid drawing gasps from the guests and the droid pointing its weapon at the Doctor's throat threateningly. "Forget it. It's over. For you and for me." He glanced up at the broken mirror, "Talk about seven years bad luck. Try three thousand..." the droid cocked its head towards the mirror and tried desperately to use its teleport, "The link with the ship is broken. No way back. You don't have the parts. How many ticks left in that clockwork heart? A day? An hour? It's over. Accept that. I'm not winding you up."

One by one the droids powered down and slumped forwards, one falling back and smashing on the floor.

The guests whispered among themselves as the Doctor turned to face Tory who was standing behind him, a beaming grin on her face.

He opened his mouth to speak but Tory just threw herself into his arms and attached her lips to his in a kiss she had waited five years for. It wasn't gentle; it was a passionate kiss between two lovers, one who hadn't seen the other in five years and the other who thought she was going to die not ten seconds ago. The Doctor nipped at her lips playfully as Tory pulled back.

"I've missed you." She whispered to him as she rested her forehead against his own.

"I'd never of guessed." He teased. Tory slapped him playfully in retaliation. He kissed her again quickly before wrapping an arm around her waist and walking to Reinette, offering her his empty hand to help her to her feet, "You all right?" he questioned. Reinette nodded and took the offered hand.

"What's happened to them?" she questioned, staring around at the now harmless droids.

"They've stopped." The Doctor explained, "They have no purpose now."

)0(

Tory led the Doctor and Reinette from the ballroom, Reinette breaking off from the party to see to the King. Tory grabbed two untouched glasses of wine from a remarkably undisturbed table as she passed. She led the Doctor to a window that looked out over the palace grounds and offered a beautiful view of the stars.

The Doctor took one glass and sipped it as he studied the sky. Tory held onto his empty hand and leant her head against his shoulder.

"I'm sorry." she whispered against his arm.

"What for?" he asked confused, glancing down at her.

"I can't get you back home."

"What?" the Doctor turned and grabbed her upper arms, "Are you alright?" he demanded.

"I'm fine." Tory reassured him, "I've just spent too long in one place; it's messed up my Meridian Particles." She tried to explain, "I could travel anywhere in the world but I can't time travel." She shrugged.

"Forever?"

"No!" she answered quickly, "Just a few years while I recalibrate."

"Years?" he let out a sigh and kissed Tory on the forehead. Reinette walked up behind the pair as they turned back to studying the stars.

"You know all their names, don't you?" she asked the quiet pair, "I saw that in your mind. The name of every star."

"What's in a name?" the Doctor questioned in return, "Names are just titles. Titles don't tell you anything."

"Like, "The Doctor"." Reinette teased.

"Like, "Madame de Pompadour"." He teased back making both women laugh.

"I have often wished to see those stars a little closer." Reinette took a sip of wine as she regarded the two, "Just as you have, I think."

"From time to time." The Doctor answered as Tory nodded her agreement.

"I wouldn't leave you alone." Tory re-enforced.

"In saving me, you trapped yourself. Did you know that would happen?" Reinette questioned the Doctor.

"We're not trapped," The Doctor grinned, "just staying a little longer than normal." Reinette smiled.

"There were many doors between my world and yours. Can you not use one of the others?" she suggested.

"When the mirror broke," The Doctor explained, "the shock will have severed all the links with the ship. There'll be a few more broken mirrors and torn tapestries around here, I'm afraid. Wherever there was a time window. I'll... I'll, er... pay for any damage." Reinette and Tory laughed, "Um... oh, that's a thought, I'm gonna need money. I was always a bit vague about money. Where do you get money?"

"Generally," Tory grinned up at him, "you work for it."

"So, here you are. My lonely angel. Stuck on the slow path, with me."

"Yep." The Doctor agreed, "The slow path." He grinned and held up his glass, "Here's to the slow path." Reinette and the Doctor chinked their glasses together making Tory giggle.

"It's a pity..." Reinette mused, "I think I would've enjoyed the slow path."

"Well, we're not going anywhere." The Doctor pointed out.

"Oh, aren't you?" she put her wine down on the windowsill, "Take my hand."

Tory remained, staring out the window, as the pair left to whatever Reinette wanted to show the Doctor. She was still standing there when Reinette came running back, happier than Tory had ever seen her.

)0(

It was dark, but that was only to be expected in a time before the creation of the electric light. Tory sighed and looked up at the stars; she was standing at one of the many windows in the Palace of Versailles in the personal chambers of Reinette Poisson, the mistress to the King.

"Oh how far we fall." Tory whispered, resting her head against the window pain.

"I always did call you my angles." A rasping voice answered. Tory turned in surprise and headed towards the large bed in the centre of the room as fast as she could in all those skirts.

"Reinette! I thought you were sleeping!" Tory sat quickly on the side of the bed and grasped the limp hand Reinette no longer had the strength to move herself.

Reinette chuckled, the amused sound turning into a hacking cough part way through. Tory helped her sit up and supported her through the fit, handing her a glass of water once it was over.

"Thank you." Reinette spoke up as Tory put the water back on the side and moved away so Reinette could lie down once more, "You have given my letter to the King?" Reinette questioned once she had her breath back.

"Yes," Tory reassured her, "he has the letter you wrote for him and the one you wrote for the Doctor."

"Good." Reinette closed her eyes again, "It will be good to rest without worry."

Tory closed her eyes as well but in her case it was not to rest but to hold in the tears. She had tried so very hard to convince Reinette to let Tory take her to a time where she could get help but Reinette said the sickness was god's wish and refused the help; Tory wasn't about to force her.

It was six years since the Doctor had last been seen; he was using a method of travel even less reliable than his own driving. Reinette was 43; much too young to die.

Tory hung her head as Reinette's breathing slowed and then stopped. She let a sob escape when Reinette's chest fell still. Tory stood slowly and placed one last kiss on the dead woman's forehead before walking out of the room.

The men standing guard on either side of the door interpreted her sombre look and hung their heads as they walked away to fetch the King.

Alone in the empty corridor Tory looked back at the room she had just left.

"Goodbye, my friend." She whispered before vanishing in a flash of silver Meridian particles.

Tory reappeared, crying her eyes out, in the one place she had ever really called home; her and Jordan's shared living room.

)0(

Jordan was standing in the kitchen, her back to the door, making herself a cup of tea when she heard Tory arriving.

"Hey," she called out as she removed her tea bag and placed it in the bin, "I wanted to say sorry for how I was at work today," she turned and stopped as she saw Tory's tear stained face. "Tory." Jordan whispered quietly, "What happened to you?" Receiving no answer Jordan placed her un-drunk tea back down on the counter and pulled the other woman into her arms, "Come on, let's get you to bed, yeah?"

)0(

Something was wrong with Tory, that much was obvious, but Jordan couldn't work out what. Tory refused to speak about what had happened other than the fact that she was traveling with the Doctor. Jordan was at the end of her rope. Sure Tory would eat, drink and interact with her but the life in it was gone, all the excitement, all the things that made Tory herself. All gone.

"I'll have to call in the big guns…" Jordan muttered, glancing at the closed door to Tory's room before pulling out her 'super phone' and searching for the right number, "Please pick up." She whispered, "Please."

)0(

The Doctor sat on the Captain's chair in the TARDIS control room and stared at the console lost in thought. Reinette's lover, the King of France, had told him about the day Reinette died; Tory had stayed with her until the end, all that time, and then vanished. Some had claimed that Tory had been sent to kill Reinette but anyone who had seen the two together knew that to be untrue; they had loved each other like sisters.

He pulled out the letter Reinette had left for him once more and opened it.

**My Dear Doctor. The path has never seemed more slow, and yet I fear I am nearing its end. Your Tory has tried so very hard to get me well but this is God's will and so must be obeyed.**

**Reason tells me that you and I are unlikely to meet again. But Tory tells me I should not listen to reason. I have seen the world inside your head, and know that all things are possible. Hurry though, my Doctor. My days grow shorter now, and I am so very weak. Tory cries when she thinks I am resting; please help her. God speed, my lonely angel.**

Tory was long gone by the time the Doctor arrived and he had no idea where she had gone. If he had to guess he would say that she had gone home, to Jordan, and he didn't want to interrupt if Tory would rather have Jordan's comfort than his own; though it did give him a strange feeling in his chest to think of Tory wanting another person's company over his.

He shot to his feet in shock as the TARDIS phone started ringing. He jerked towards the console and grabbed it out of its cradle.

"Hello?" he asked.

"Doctor! It's Jordan; I need your help!"

)0(

The TARDIS materialised in the same cleared corner of the room that Tory had and the Doctor stuck his head out of the door. Jordan was sitting on an armchair facing the open TARDIS doors.

"She's in her room." Jordan told him without being asked. He nodded his thanks and moved towards the door.

"Tory?" he knocked, calling through the door, "Can I come in?" he didn't hear a sound of protest so he opened the door slowly, "Oh Tory." He sighed, moving into the room and closing the door behind him as he saw Tory curled up in her bed staring up at him with a lost look in her eye, "I'm sorry."

Tory climbed out of the bed and ran into his arms, tucking her head under his chin and holding onto him as tightly as she could.

"I'm so sorry." The Doctor whispered as he slowly lowered them to the floor as Tory started to cry again, "So, so sorry." He placed a kiss on the top of her head and ran a comforting hand up and down her back as she burrowed into his arms.

It was nearly an hour later when the Doctor and Tory started to move. They were still sitting on the floor with the Doctor's back resting against the door while Try's head rested on his chest, listening to the comforting double beats of his hearts. The moment ended when the Doctor rested his head back and hit the wall with a thump. Both Time Lords jumped at the unexpected noise. Tory stared at the Doctor's sheepish expression as he looked down at her guiltily and couldn't hold back, what she would later deny was, a giggle. The Doctor grinned at the sound, nudging her away from him and standing before offering his hand to help her up.

"Thanks." Tory smiled at him, the sadness still in her eyes, "For being here."

"Where else would I be?" he teased.

"Oh I don't know, you and that blue box could go anywhere, anywhen."

"But I'd rather be right here right now."

"In my bedroom?" Tory questioned, "Nice to know where your priorities lie."

"Weeeellllll, I can't say it's not a benefit," Tory make a playful swipe at his arm.

"Oh shut it you."

"But," he looked into her eyes completely serious, "I'd rather be right beside you than anywhere else." Tory blushed but reached up and kissed him on the cheek, or at least tried to; the Doctor, knowing what she was doing turned his head at the last moment so their lips met instead.

Tory felt the Doctor smirking into the kiss and bit his lip in retaliation. He took the chance to deepen the kiss, their tongues met and twisted around each other as the two tried to find a rhythm. Tory grinned as the Doctor moaned and pulled her closer, his arms wrapping around her waist while hers went to his neck and started playing with the short hairs on the back of his neck.

They pulled back, panting, as the Doctor buried his head into her neck.

The Doctor straightened and grabbed Tory's hand in his.

"Come on." He led her out of the room and towards the TARDIS. Tory grinned at Jordan as they passed her getting a relived grin in return.

"No wild parties while I'm gone." She instructed as the Doctor searched for the TARDIS key.

"You ruin all my good ideas." Jordan fake pouted before becoming serious, "Whatever made you sad T, is it okay now?"

"No," Tory answered, "but it will be." The two women shared a grin just as the Doctor opened the TARDIS doors and pulled Tory inside. The door closed and the TARDIS dematerialised.

"Take care of her Doctor." Jordan whispered before going towards her laptop and opening her U.N.I.T. files; Torchwood was up to something and it was her job to find out what.

)0(

Rose was waiting inside the console room when the two entered and pulled Tory into a hug as soon as the Doctor let go to pilot the ship, Rose rejoiced when the Doctor pulled Tory back into his arms as soon as he could.

"You gonna be okay?" Rose asked gently, she didn't understand why the Doctor had such a close relationship with Reinette but she knew that Tory had stayed with her for years, Rose could only compare that bond to her losing her mother and she knew that that was something she would never want to consider let alone actually happen.

"Yeah." Tory answered, "I'll be alright."

"Mickey's gone to the room the TARDIS gave him for the night." Rose told the Doctor who glanced at her from studying the TARDIS scanner with his arm around Tory's waist.

"Rose," the Doctor grinned at her suddenly, "hold on something." Rose grabbed for the rails while Tory, after taking a glance at the screen to see what had the Doctor so excited, moved away from the pair and up onto the second level. The Doctor glanced back towards the corridor leading to the bedrooms before flicking another switch, "There we go; stabilisers for the bedrooms so we don't wake Mickey."

"What are we doing?" Rose asked excitedly as the Doctor started to dart around the console; almost looking like he was dancing.

"We're going surfing!" the Doctor answered.

"Surfing?" Rose repeated, confused.

"Yeah, on a supernova!" he pushed down a lever and the TARDIS started to shake.

Tory laughed at the two from her perch, watching as the stumbled uncontrollably around the console room, the Doctor occasionally forcing himself towards the console to put in some commands. Tory used her Meridian Particles to keep herself in place as the TARDIS gave a sudden lurch and tossed the Doctor and Rose to the ground, only just stopping herself from falling.

The Doctor and Rose laughed madly from their place on the floor.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Mickey demanded from the doorway to the TARDIS's inner rooms. Rose looked over at him from her place on the floor and managed to pause in her giggles long enough to answer him.

"Riding a supernova!"

The Doctor climbed to his feet and threw down a lever on the TARDIS console, parking them in place, before turning to face Mickey.

"Oh yes!" he exclaimed happily, grinning in his manic way.

"You are completely mad." Tory teased him as she jumped from the upper level, using her Meridian Particles to slow her fall so she wouldn't be injured.

"You wouldn't want me any other way." The Doctor answered her. His grin widened as Tory just shook her head in amusement, a grin to match his on her face and stepped up beside him prompting him to wrap an arm around her waist. He hid his glee as her arm wrapped around him; her hand going into the back pocket of his trousers.

"So, where're we goin' next?" Mickey asked.

"I thought you were sleeping." Tory told him.

"Not gonna happen," Mickey snorted, answering Tory, "if these two," he gestured at Rose and the Doctor, "are gonna be surfing the ship."

"Sorry about that." The Doctor apologised, rubbing the back of his neck with his spare hand, "I did turn on the stabilisers in the bedrooms." He shrugged, "You can go back to sleep if you want Mickey; I'll park us in the vortex and do some repairs."

"Thanks." Mickey shot him a grateful grin before waving and walking back to his room to get some shut eye.

"Well," Rose spoke up, "If we're not going anywhere I might as well do the same." She started to walk down the corridor, "Night Doctor, night Tory. Don't stay up too late!" she yelled over her shoulder with a grin, moving out of earshot before either Time Lord could answer.

"Are all your companions that cheeky?" Tory teased.

"You can talk!" he returned, "Have you met your flat mate?" Tory laughed.

"Good point." She agreed.

"As always." He answered smugly.

"Oh really?" Tory asked as she moved out of his grip and towards the corridor.

"Yes really!"

"Ego's not large at all then?" she smirked.

"Hey!"

Tory giggled as she ran away from the Doctor and down the corridor. The Doctor grinned as he gave chase.

Once the Doctor would never have thought that he would be this happy with another Time Lord; even when they were still around they were a dull and stuffy people in his opinion, only Romania and the Master ever came close to what the Doctor considered his kind of Time Lord, the Master was insane and both had died when the planet did. And now the Doctor was the last Time Lord but one. When he thought he was the last, right after his ninth regeneration, he had given up all hope of ever finding another saviour of the Time War but then he met Tory and Jordan on a snowy day in Cardiff 1869 and suddenly he didn't feel so helpless and alone anymore. He couldn't picture his life without her at his side. He loved her.

The Doctor skidded to a stop, his grin almost blinding; he LOVED her.

Tory stuck her head back around the corner she had chosen to hide behind.

"Are you okay?" she asked; worried about why he had stopped.

"Never better!" he answered, a beaming smile forming on his face. Tory returned the smile with one of her own and the Doctor knew his feelings where well on the way to being, if not already, returned.

)0(

Me: and now, for what I personally feel is the best part of the chapter-

Tory: *interrupting* what do you mean 'best part'?

Timmy: the bit she looks forward to most?

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary: the part she enjoys the most?

Timmy: the part she-

Me: *loudly* Thank you boys. What I meant was that I enjoy talking to the readers and answering their questions, it makes me feel like a better author when people ask questions okay?!

Tory: *mutters* sorry.

Me: its fine. Now back to what I was saying. Tivia100 has once again reviewed!

Timmy: YEY! *jumps up and down in happiness*

Me & Tory: *grin* 

Tivia100: Glad to see your still alive! I loved this chapter, not a lot of drama, and not a lot of nothing! Beautifully written as always and I look forward to more updates! I would like to direct my question to Tory. Do you have a following like the Doctor did, people who look out for sightings of you? You would probably be the president though, just to see what you would do in the future. Timmy is welcomed any time, he is always so well behaved. Pears and I are going to Cardiff for vacation soon, going to visit the entrance of torchwood and Ianto's memorial (My favourite member of Torchwood), and would love it if you all could join us! Until later dear writer. Sincerely, Interested reader.

Timmy: oh can we go?! Ooohhh please! *puppy eyes*

Tory: sure if you want to go on a 28 hour flight be my guest, I'll wait here, Facebook me when you get there. *evil grin*

Timmy: hey; if you're payin' I'm goin'.

Tory: *takes a threatening step towards Timmy* why you little!

Me: Look! Rainbow unicorn!

Tory: *completely distracted* What? Where?

Timmy: *runs from room while he has the chance*

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary & Me: *chuckle*

Tory: *to Me* that was cruel.

Me: Love you too dear. *grins* Anyway Tivia100 asked a question.

Tory: Oh yeah….what was it again?

Me: *face palm*

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary: do you have a fanclub.

Tory: Of course I do! I'm just that awesome!

Me: no. A real one not that one in your head.

Timmy: *sticking head in room* burn!

Me & Tory & Legend-wait-for-it-Dary: shut up Timmy!

Me: to answer your question; no, Tory doesn't have a following. Most of the stuff she does on Earth is with the Doctor or with the military so they get credit for those. On other planets Tory can be recognised but only very rarely. Okay, next question!

The Final Shadow: Tory; If you are here. Answering this question now. Are you a future version  
of yourself where this has already happened to? Or does it happen as its you? Maybe just after? Or, and this is a big or. Are you just a figment of the doctors desire manifested to his perfect partner with the the TARDIS as an amplifier field?

Tory: What kind of twisted hell did that last part come from? Of course I'm real! Madd Madds! Tell her (or him) I'm real!

Me: *scribbling something out in notebook* damn there goes that plot twist.

Tory: Time-girl say whaaaaat?

Me: *grins*

Tory: I think I'm going to go curl up in a hole and cry now. *leaves the room*

Me: Oh come on T! I was only joking!*follows*

Legend-wait-for-it-Dary: soooo…..this is awkward…..*coughs* Errrrrr Tory is in her final regeneration when she's with us and remembering everything as it happens…..*coughs* I'm really not good at speaking in public like this…..

Me: *walks back into room* Tory's hiding from me…

Timmy: Don't worry, she does that. *walks into room*

Tory: *yelling from hiding place* SHUT IT DINO!

Timmy: how does she do that?!


End file.
